Welcome to the MGA Thermal Quarterly Update, hot off the block press.
CEO end-of-year message
Welcome to our latest quarterly update at MGA Thermal. As we approach the end of the calendar year, I’m thrilled to share some significant milestones with you.
Our reengineered Block manufacturing line is now operational, marking a major step forward in our production capabilities. Additionally, our MGA Demonstrator unit is nearing completion, thanks to valuable input from leading global engineering firms. The demonstration unit is progressing through the initial stages of commissioning, and we aim to have it operating at full capacity by February 2025, following a rigorous commissioning and testing phase. We have also signed and undertaken our first client FEED study, with Chevron, a US based Fortune 10 organisation, for a potential MGA solution being deployed on one of their sites globally.
Market opportunity
The global drive for industrial decarbonisation is gaining momentum, and MGA Thermal is ideally positioned to lead this transformation. Our solution converts clean, intermittent electricity into firm, 24/7 heat, which can be dispatched as high-grade industrial steam or clean steam to our client’s operations.
In Australia alone, heavy industries account for 44% of energy consumption, with half of that used for heat generation. Globally, industrial heat represents 25% of energy use and emissions (IEA). Currently, these industries rely heavily on gas boilers and carbon-based fuels for high-pressure, high-temperature steam. MGA Thermal is committed to becoming a leading technology provider in decarbonising the industrial sector worldwide.
Achievements and milestones
This year, we have:
- Successfully reengineered our Block manufacturing line with a view to key learning enabling our next successful production scale up.
- Progressed our MGA Demonstrator unit to the commissioning phase.
- Formed strategic partnerships with leading global engineering firms.
- Expanded our market presence and commercial ventures incl our first paid FEED study with Chevron, a very large Fortune rated client and Anacapa, their Engineering firm for this project, based in the USA. This collaboration represents a significant milestone for MGA Thermal as it provides validation of our business model with a Fortune 10 rated business, and independent validation of the MGA design, advancing our mission to decarbonise industrial heat on a global scale.
Acknowledgments
I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to our dedicated team, who have worked tirelessly including on a 24/7 roster over the past few months. Your commitment and hard work are the backbone of MGA Thermal’s success. We’ve made a tremendous recovery this year, and I am deeply grateful for the unwavering support from our team and stakeholders.
Next year promises to be our most significant yet. We will transition from telling the world what we plan to do, to showing them what we have accomplished. We look forward to this journey with you and to making 24/7 renewables a reality with your continued support.
Call to action
Stay engaged with us by following our updates, participating in our upcoming events, and providing your valuable feedback. Together, we can achieve our vision of a sustainable, decarbonised industrial sector.
Thank you, and happy holidays!
Exciting updates on our Demonstration Unit
What a massive year! The MGA Team took on the task of rectifying and recommissioning our Demo Unit head-on, and we’re excited to announce the plant is now in commissioning!
This quarter has been especially exciting as we saw MGA Blocks loaded, duct work modified and placed back together, all of the construction finishing up and all major plant handed over to commissioning.
Commissioning has officially started on the control systems, steam circuit and nitrogen systems including the heat recovery loop. We are thrilled about our hard work coming together and can’t wait to share the news with you.
MGA Thermal selected by Chevron for innovative clean steam solution study
We are thrilled to announce MGA Thermal, has been selected by Chevron to conduct an engineering and design study for an innovative clean steam solution. This study marks a significant milestone for MGA Thermal and underscores the growing importance of decarbonisation technologies in the energy sector. The study focuses on the application of MGA Thermal’s clean steam solution on a 5MWh trial unit designed for a Chevron site.
“Collaborating with Chevron represents a significant milestone for MGA Thermal as it provides validation of our business model with a Fortune 10 rated business, and independent validation of the MGA design, advancing our mission to decarbonise industrial heat on a global scale.” said Mark Croudace, CEO of MGA Thermal.
“At Chevron, we’re committed to delivering affordable, reliable, and ever-cleaner energy. Our collaboration with MGA Thermal is just one example of the forward-thinking required to deliver on our strategy to reduce the carbon intensity of our operations and advance new solutions for major industries,” commented Luc Huyse, Manager, Operations and Facilities at Chevron Innovation.
"We look forward to the insights this study provides as we continue our journey towards a lower-carbon future.”
We are pleased to announce that MGA Thermal, secured investment from climate tech angel syndicate Electrifi Venturesin partnership with Climate Salad. This investment joins Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA)’s recently announced $2.5 million grant funding boost. “In a landscape where funding accessibility remains the biggest hurdle for founders, the combined support of Electrifi Ventures and Climate Salad demonstrates the power of ecosystem collaboration in advancing climate innovation,” said Mark Croudace, CEO of MGA Thermal. “This investment, alongside ARENA’s continued support, will accelerate the completion of our Demonstration Unit, advancing our mission to revolutionise industrial energy storage.”
MGA wins 2024 Australian Climate Tech Impact Award!
We are stoked to share that MGA Thermal has won the 2024 Australian Climate Tech Awards, Impact Category! Our Head of Business Development, Will Furness, proudly represented MGA at the presentation event in Sydney. The Impact Award spotlights Australian Climate Tech who’ve driven significant strides in climate change mitigation, adaptation, or resilience over the past year. Being acknowledged by the Climate Saladtech community is an honour and a testament to our drive to make continuous renewable energy a reality.
MGA at All Energy!
In October we had a booth at All Energy Australia. With a record 15,000+ attendees this year, it was a fantastic opportunity to connect with industry leaders, pitch our solution with client prospects and explain how MGA can decarbonise industrial heat through thermal energy storage, on stage.
Minister visit
We were honoured to host the Hon Ed Husic MP and Meryl Swanson MP at the MGA factory, sharing our 2024 progress and how we are making 24/7 renewables a reality, and discussing potential support and next steps. We updated the ministers on how we are working towards decarbonising heavy industry through thermal energy storage, and how the business plans to expand, supporting regional jobs and promoting Australian exports. We are always proud to show-off our facility and work with Australia’s key leaders in the shift towards decarbonisation.
Conferences & Events
MGA leadership also met with NSW Energy and Climate Change Minister Penny Sharpe at an event where she announced the state government plans to nearly double its long-duration energy storage (LDES) target from 16GWh to 28GWh!
Our Chief Scientist and Cofounder Erich Kisi and CFO Anna Starrett, GAICD met with Senator Tim Ayres, Assistant Minister for Trade and Assistant Minister for a Future Made in Australia, and Sharon Claydon MP at I2N at The University of Newcastle. It was wonderful to update the minister on our MGA’s TES technology, our solution to decarbonise industrial heat and our goal to make 24/7 renewables a reality.
Our Co-Founder and CTO, Dr. Alexander Post, had the pleasure of addressing a packed room at SXSW Sydney for a panel on “Hardware vs. Software: Who Is Winning the Fight for Climate Change?” Alex joined other innovative founders (Lewis Dunnigan, Co-Founder & CEO at Bygen, Kristi Knaack Riordan, Co-Founder & CEO at Harvest B, and Glenn Bartlett, CEO & Co-Founder at GreenPay | VC @ Alberts Impact Ventures) to discuss how hardware solutions are crucial in combating the global climate crisis.
As part of our commercialisation strategy, we have been out and about meeting stakeholders, and building networks and relationships. Here are some highlights you may have seen us at!
· Will Furness, Head of Business Development at MGA Thermal, joined the 2024 HunterNet Future Leaders Program Roundtable Luncheon, sharing his experience of turning ideas into commercial successes.
· Our CEO Mark Croudace at the Deep Tech Week 2024 – through Peerless: Main Sequence Portfolio Day, joining the ‘100k per day -Velocity as a Currency’.
· Mark Croudace on the Long Duration Energy Storage Panel at the Clean Energy Council’s Australian Clean Energy Summit!
· Dr. Alexander Post, our CTO and Co-founder, recently attended and spoke at the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) Insights Forum.
· Our CEO, Mark Croudace, and Head of Business Development, Will Furness, attended the Energy Storage Summit Australia 2024 in May.
· In late May, MGA Thermal’s Mark Croudace pitched to global investors, clients, and peer companies at the inaugural Long Duration Energy Storage Council (LDES Council) annual meeting, hosted at Microsoft HQ in Seattle, USA.
· Mark Croudace joined the IPEF Clean Economy Investor Forum in Singapore, as MGA was named in the Climate Tech Top 100 for the Indo-Pacific region by HolonIQ.
· Mark Croudace represented MGA at the Smart Energy Expo in March in Sydney.
· Mark Croudace and Dr. Alexander Post also attended the Long Duration Energy Storage Council Australian workshop and members meeting in Sydney.
· Mark Croudace also added his expertise on the Hunter region’s energy transition panel at the Future Directions Breakfast hosted by CPA NSW Newcastle and Hunter Branch in March.
We're joining forces with NSW Government’s Targeted Workforce Development Scheme to help grow and support our people as we make 24/7 renewables a reality. Watch the video here.
R&D Update
This quarter the R&D department has been assisting the tunnel kiln commissioning and pre-production followed by block manufacturing support.
Our Quality Control (QC) process for the production line involves non-destructive testing of all blocks and destructive testing of a selection of blocks from different areas in the kiln to confirm that they are fired to our rigorous specifications. This keeps the team fully utilised during peak production times.
The recent start of block firing in the tunnel kiln marks the successful implementation of a large R&D project. This sees a new production method utilised for MGA Block production, imparting the blocks with further beneficial properties. It’s great to see many months of hard work being operationalised on the production line, with the system rolling out QC approved blocks by the pallet-load.
Our Chief Scientist and Co-founder Dr. Erich Kisi, leveraged his connections in the world of neutron scattering at theAustralian Centre for Neutron Scattering at ANSTO in Sydney. Neutron diffraction patterns were recorded from production block samples through the centre’s commercial access program. These Neutron diffraction patterns from our block samples enhance the data we get from our inhouse X-ray diffraction, which we also use for QC and research.
We’re incredibly proud of our R&D team’s efforts over the past year, keeping MGA at the forefront of energy storage materials. Thank you.
People Update
We’ve had some incredible hires this year: Will Furness as Head of Business Development, Evan Keyzer as R&D Manager, and Paul Vidler as Safety Specialist. Plus, Annie Lacombe was promoted to Head of Engineering in 2024.
Our HR department has been busy improving internal processes and policies. They’ve streamlined our performance and development review system and introduced more targeted development support. HR has also expanded our policies to include recent Industrial Relations changes like Flexible Work, Right to Disconnect, and Positive Duty.
Thank you for your continued support and interest in MGA Thermal. We look forward to sharing more updates with you soon, so watch this space, and make sure you’re subscribed to our announcements mailing list!
Renewables in the News
Our top picks for recent renewables news; with an Australian focus.
The power grid in eastern Australia could experience strains from too little power demand as soon as next spring unless states speed up actions to cope with surplus generation from solar panels on sunny days, the Australian Energy Market Operator (Aemo) has warned.
Penny Sharpe, the New South Wales energy minister, has announced plans to legislate a new long-duration energy storage (LDES) target for the Australian state of 28GWh by 2034.
The CSIRO's new GenCost report again says a nuclear powerplant for Australia would likely cost twice as much as renewable energy. Australia's leading science agency also said nuclear power plants enjoyed relatively little financial advantage from their long lives and would run at a capacity similar to coal.
In its inaugural Annual Report, the Long Duration Energy Storage Council presents a deployment roadmap to spur action among key stakeholders and decisionmakers. The report offers a current perspective and accounting on the global policy, regulatory and market environment for LDES, along with updated data and industry use cases.
This report delves into the projected electricity workforce requirements stemming from the Australian Energy Market Operator’s (AEMO) 2024 Integrated System Plan (ISP). These projections encompass technology, location and occupation, focusing on electricity generation and storage as well as the construction of new transmission lines outlined in the ISP.
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