Form Energy and its iron batteries

Form Energy is a company founded in 2017 and headquartered in Somerville, Massachusetts, United States.

It specializes in developing long-duration energy storage solutions using batteries made primarily from iron, a metal that is far more abundant and cheaper than the lithium used in traditional batteries.

The company’s technology relies on a process called reversible rusting: during discharge, oxygen from the air converts iron into rust, releasing electrons to power the grid.

When charging, an electric current reverses the process, turning rust back into iron metal.

This approach allows the batteries to store energy for up to 100 hours, significantly longer than the 4 to 6 hours typical of lithium-ion batteries.

Form Energy’s goal is to make its batteries cost-competitive with natural gas, aiming for a price of $20 per kilowatt-hour, though the current cost has not been disclosed.