Espoo-based Steady Energy, a company dedicated to providing uninterrupted zero-emission energy solutions, has raised €2 million in seed funding co-led by VTT, Yes VC, and Lifeline Ventures. The company will use the raised funding for further R&D work.
- Launched in 2023 as a spin-out company from VTT Technical Research Center of Finland, Steady Energy aims to decarbonize the energy-intensive heating industry, starting with residential and district heating.
- At the core of its solution lies the LDR-50 nuclear reactor that is made of two nested pressure vessels, with their intermediate space partially filled with water. Steady Energy claims that its LDR-50 is designed to operate at around 150 °C and below 10 bar (145 psi). The innovation was awarded a patent in 2021 and will be built by 2030.
“The pressure required by the LDR-50 reactor is comparable to the pressure, that of a household espresso machine. It operates at a lower pressure than a district heating network. This ensures that in case of a malfunction which leads to a leak, the leak is contained within the heating plant, without endangering people or the environment,”
Tommi Nyman, CEO of Steady Energy, says.
- The fresh seed round was co-led by VTT Technical Research Center of Finland, an impartial non-profit Research and Technology Organization with the mission to support economic competitiveness, societal development, and innovation, San Francisco-based pre-seed and seed-stage firm Yes VC, and Lifeline Ventures, Helsinki-based sector agnostic early-stage investor.
- Steady Energy will use the raised funding for research and development work to demonstrate the functionality of the plant by building a 1:1 scale mockup powered by electric heat.