It started with a sketch on a napkin. Now AirLoom Energy is raising $12.7 million in new funding, according to TechCrunch.
The funding came from 21 investors, according to a regulatory filing which does not mention the names of the supporters. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Wyoming-based startup has a new approach to wind power. Instead of mounting huge turbines on 100-plus-meter towers, it connects vertical blades to cables that run along an oval-shaped track just 25 meters (82 feet) above the ground. The company hopes to generate electricity at $13 per megawatt hour, which would be more than 50% cheaper than traditional onshore wind.
The idea for the circuit was inspired by kiteboarding, the hobby of founder Robert Lumley. He first sketched the idea on a napkin during a wind energy conference in Berlin.
Much of the projected cost savings comes from the AirLoom’s lower profile. Today’s wind turbines become more efficient as they grow, but the huge towers and blades are difficult to transport, sometimes requiring up to one year pre-planning. AirLoom components are smaller, which makes them easier to build, move and assemble when on site.
AirLoom last raised a $4 million seed round in November from Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital and the Bill Gates-founded MCJ Collective. At the same time, it also appointed a new CEO, Neal Rickner, who previously served as COO of Makani Energy, the Alphabet company that tried to use kits to harvest wind energy.
In November, Rickner told TechCrunch that the company’s next step is to improve the technology to the point where it can build a 1-megawatt pilot, which it had targeted for 2026. The new funding is likely to help fund that project.
