Street Talk can reveal a $65 million equity raising is slated to get underway next month, and will be overseen by Pottinger’s John Sheehy who’s expected to test interest with financial and strategic investors.Until now, ArcActive’s been supported by a group of wealth investors and technology co-developers who have collectively put in just shy of $37.
Christchurch-based ArcActive will use the new funds to establish an Australian factory with sites in Queensland and Victoria under consideration. The company, which was spun out of the University of Canterbury in 2011, develops recyclable battery storage systems which it reckons gives Tesla’s popular Powewall a run for its money on price and efficiency.
As one of the world leaders in rooftop solar, Australia is an obvious place for ArcActive to target for rapid expansion. The company will look to employ around 70 people once it establishes a site and hopes to get its batteries into manufacturing within 18 months. Its batteries can be used in cars and heavy vehicles, but ArcActive isn’t looking to compete with lithium iron batteries commonly used in electric vehicles.