What Hydrostor does

Hydrostor Inc. is a Toronto-based long-duration energy storage developer founded in 2010, operating four offices across Canada, the United States, and Australia with 130+ employees. The company's core product is its patented Advanced Compressed Air Energy Storage (A-CAES) technology platform, which stores off-peak or surplus electricity by compressing air into purpose-built underground hard rock caverns at 2,000-2,500 feet depth and uses a closed-loop water head for hydrostatic pressure compensation; proprietary thermal storage captures compression heat for emissions-free discharge without combustion of natural gas. Hydrostor markets 50+ year asset lifetime, no critical-mineral dependency, no hazardous end-of-life waste, and full ancillary services capability (rotational inertia, voltage support, spinning reserve, black start, frequency response) — positioning A-CAES as an alternative to lithium-ion batteries at 8+ hour duration and to pumped hydro on land and water footprint.

Hydrostor monetizes its technology through project-by-project utility-scale deployments sold via long-dated offtake contracts to investor-owned utilities, community choice aggregators, and grid system operators. Revenue streams include multi-year capacity payments (e.g., 50 MW / 400 MWh offtake with California Community Power for Willow Rock; the Ontario IESO contract at Goderich), contracted revenue under the NSW Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap (Long-Term Energy Service Agreement from AEMO Services, Network Service Agreement with Transgrid for Silver City), merchant market and ancillary services revenue from operational facilities, and equipment supply arrangements with strategic technology partner Baker Hughes. The company's go-to-market combines direct enterprise field sales into utilities/CCAs/ISOs with strategic partner channels (Baker Hughes for equipment, Hatch for project execution), plus policy advocacy and industry-association engagement to shape LDES procurement frameworks.

Hydrostor's portfolio currently consists of one commercially contracted operating facility — the Goderich Energy Storage Centre in Ontario (1.75 MW discharge / 2.2 MW charge, ~10 MWh, in service since 2019) — and a pipeline of 15+ projects totaling approximately 7 GW across California, Ontario, Arizona, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, New York, Nevada, Virginia, and the United Kingdom. Two late-stage projects are advancing toward construction: Willow Rock (500 MW / 4,000 MWh, Kern County, California, CEC permit secured December 2025) and Silver City (200 MW / 1,600 MWh, Broken Hill, NSW, development agreement approved February 2025). Earlier-stage projects include Quinte (500 MW initial, up to 2,000 MW expansion potential, Ontario), Copper Valley (500 MW / 4,000 MWh, Arizona), and Wellington (up to 500 MW / 8,000 MWh, NSW). The company is privately held, has raised more than US$500 million from institutional and strategic investors including Goldman Sachs Alternatives, CPP Investments, Canada Growth Fund, Export Development Canada, Baker Hughes, and Hatch, and is not yet generating material commercial revenue.

Name

Hydrostor

Legal name

Hydrostor Inc.

Website

https://hydrostor.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Hydrostor Inc., founded in 2010 and headquartered in Toronto, develops and operates utility-scale Advanced Compressed Air Energy Storage (A-CAES) facilities, selling long-duration (8+ hour) storage capacity under long-term offtake agreements to utilities, community choice aggregators, and grid system operators across Canada, the United States, and Australia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Utility-Scale Long-Duration Energy Storage

NAICS

Hydroelectric Power Generation (221111), Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution (2211)

SIC

Water Supply (4941)

akta.pro primary industry

Mechanical LDES (Pumped Hydro, Compressed/Liquid Air, Flywheels) (EUAFADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Pumped-Storage Hydroelectric Generation (EUACAEAC), Hydropower Plant EPC (Dam, Run-of-River, Pumped Hydro Civil Works) (EUAEAAAD), Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSH) (New Build, Expansion, Conversions) (EUAMADAJ)

Keywords

• Compressed air energy storage
• Long-duration energy storage
• Utility-scale storage systems
• Grid energy storage infrastructure
• Renewable energy storage

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Long-term offtake agreements with utilities and CCAs: Multi-year contracted capacity payments from utilities and community choice aggregators (e.g., 50 MW / 400 MWh offtake with California Community Power, 1.75 MW Goderich contract with Ontario IESO for peaking capacity and ancillary services). Revenue is contracted in MW capacity blocks with associated MWh energy delivery.
2. Long-Term Energy Service Agreements (LTESA) and Network Service Agreements: Long-dated contracted revenue under NSW government's Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap (LTESA from AEMO Services) and network service payments (Network Service Agreement with Transgrid) for Silver City in New South Wales, Australia.
3. Merchant energy market and ancillary services revenue: Participation in wholesale electricity markets and merchant energy arbitrage, plus revenue from ancillary services (spinning reserve, voltage support, frequency response) at operational facilities such as the Goderich Energy Storage Centre in Ontario.
4. Equipment supply and technology licensing to partners: Long-term equipment supply agreements with strategic technology partners (e.g., up to 1.4 GW of Baker Hughes compression/expansion/motor/generator equipment for flagship A-CAES projects in the U.S. and Australia).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Hydrostor develops, builds, and operates utility-scale Advanced Compressed Air Energy Storage (A-CAES) facilities that store off-peak or surplus electricity by compressing air into purpose-built underground hard rock caverns (2,000–2,500 ft deep) using closed-loop hydrostatic water compensation, with proprietary thermal storage that captures compression heat for emissions-free discharge. Deliverables are 500 MW-class, 8+ hour long-duration storage projects (e.g., Willow Rock 500 MW / 4,000 MWh in California, Silver City 200 MW / 1,600 MWh in Australia, Quinte 500 MW in Ontario) sold to utilities, community choice aggregators, and grid operators via long-term offtake and service agreements.

Product overview

Hydrostor's offering is a single unified technology platform — its patented Advanced Compressed Air Energy Storage (A-CAES) — instantiated across a global portfolio of utility-scale storage projects. The A-CAES platform is the core technology that all named projects share; each project (Willow Rock Energy Storage Center, Silver City Energy Storage Centre, Quinte Energy Storage Centre, Copper Valley Energy Storage Center, Wellington Energy Storage Center, and the operational Goderich Energy Storage Centre) is a distinct site-specific deployment of this platform at varying stages of development across California, Ontario, New South Wales, and Arizona. Hydrostor does not market a software product; its deliverable is long-duration, grid-scale energy storage infrastructure delivered as engineered facilities to utilities, community choice aggregators, and grid operators.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Willow Rock Energy Storage Center 500 MW / 4,000 MWh A-CAES facility in Kern County, California, delivering eight hours of continuous discharge to power more than 400,000 homes. Hydrostor's first utility-scale U.S. project, with a 50 MW offtake signed with California Community Power and Hatch leading design and execution. Expected online in 2030.
• Silver City Energy Storage Centre 200 MW / 1,600 MWh A-CAES facility in Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia, providing 8+ hours of energy storage to reduce diesel generator reliance and transmission upgrades in Western NSW. Backed by a Network Service Agreement with Transgrid and a Long-Term Energy Service Agreement (LTESA) from AEMO Services under NSW's Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap.
• Quinte Energy Storage Centre A-CAES facility in Lennox & Addington County, Ontario (Greater Napanee / Loyalist Township), with initial 500 MW / up to 1,600 MWh capacity capable of powering 500,000 homes for eight hours. Developed in partnership with the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte as Indigenous equity partner. Operations targeted for early 2030s with expansion phases up to 2,000 MW.
• Goderich Energy Storage Centre World's first commercially contracted A-CAES facility, located in Goderich, Ontario, Canada. 1.75 MW discharge / 2.2 MW charge capacity with more than 10 MWh (contracted to 7 MWh), in service since 2019 and contracted by Ontario's IESO for peaking capacity, ancillary services, and merchant energy market participation.
• Copper Valley Energy Storage Center

Quantifiable outcome

• Willow Rock to power more than 400,000 homes for 8+ hours
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Mohawks of the Bay of QuintecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 May 2026Indigenous equity partner for Hydrostor's Quinte Energy Storage Centre in Greater Napanee, Ontario. Hydrostor is developing the project in partnership with the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, who will be an Indigenous equity partner.
• HatchflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 February 2026Strategic project execution partnership and equity investment agreement. Hatch, a global engineering firm, will lead the design and execution for the Willow Rock Energy Storage Center (500 MW / 4,000 MWh A-CAES facility in Kern County, California) while taking an equity stake in Hydrostor. The agreement signals confidence in A-CAES technology and Hydrostor's business, joining the existing list of leading equity investors.
• California Community Power (CC Power)flagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 12 February 2026CC Power and member CCAs (including Central Coast Community Energy / 3CE) have signed offtake agreements with Hydrostor for the Willow Rock A-CAES project, representing both a customer relationship and a co-marketing partnership for clean long-duration storage in California. CC Power General Manager Alexander Morris provided a public endorsement.
• Baker HughesflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 January 2026Strategic technology solutions and equity agreement announced at the 2026 Baker Hughes Annual Meeting in Florence. Baker Hughes will integrate its technology capabilities as part of Hydrostor's core design offering for A-CAES solutions, including up to 1.4 GW of compression, expander, motor, and generator equipment orders for Hydrostor's flagship Willow Rock (U.S.) and Silver City (Australia) projects. Baker Hughes has been an investor in Hydrostor since 2019, and this marks an expansion of that investor relationship as Hydrostor nears construction.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Form Energy: Form Energy is a leading U.S. long-duration storage developer using iron-air battery chemistry to deliver 100+ hour discharge at utility scale, directly competing with Hydrostor's A-CAES for utility LDES procurement in the U.S. Both companies pursue 8+ hour duration contracts with investor-owned utilities and are part of the same federal LDES policy ecosystem.
• Eos Energy Enterprises: Eos Energy Enterprises develops zinc-based battery storage systems targeting 8+ hour utility-scale long-duration storage, primarily for U.S. investor-owned utilities and community choice aggregators. The customer overlap (CCAs, IOUs) and duration target (8+ hours) make Eos a direct comparable in the same California and broader U.S. procurement processes.
• Highview Power: Highview Power is a UK-headquartered long-duration energy storage developer using Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES / cryogenic) to deliver 8+ hour grid-scale storage, directly competing with Hydrostor's A-CAES for the same utility and ISO procurement dollars in the UK, U.S., and Australia. The companies target identical customer segments and duration requirements.
• Quidnet Energy: Quidnet Energy is the closest direct competitor in compressed air energy storage, developing a similar below-ground CAES architecture targeting utility-scale long-duration storage. Both companies pursue the same utility and grid-operator buyer segment with the same fundamental technology class, making Quidnet the most directly comparable peer for technology, business model, and customer overlap.
• ESS Inc. ESS Inc. builds iron flow battery systems for long-duration utility-scale storage (8–12+ hours), directly competing with Hydrostor's A-CAES for utility, CCA, and community-energy procurement. Both companies target emissions-free, non-lithium storage at the same duration and scale, with overlapping customer profiles in California, the U.S. Midwest, and Australia.
• Energy Vault: Energy Vault develops gravity-based and hybrid long-duration energy storage systems targeting 8+ hour utility-scale storage, and is one of the most visible LDES developers globally. Like Hydrostor, it sells directly to utilities, ISOs, and developers, and has a public listing that makes it a useful reference for capital-markets and commercial progress in the LDES category.
• Antora Energy: Antora Energy is a California-based long-duration storage and industrial heat developer using thermal carbon block storage to deliver 8+ hour dispatchable power and heat, with a customer profile (California utilities, data centers, industrial) that overlaps with Hydrostor's Willow Rock offtake base. Both are LDES-first developers competing for the same California procurement mandate.

Emerging players

• Malta Inc. Malta Inc. (a Google X spinout) is developing pumped heat energy storage targeting long-duration grid-scale storage, with a similar emissions-free, long-duration value proposition to Hydrostor's A-CAES. It is at a pre-commercial stage relative to Hydrostor, but addresses the same utility LDES buyer and is a meaningful emerging comparator for next-generation storage technologies.

Broad incumbents

• Tesla (Megapack / Energy Storage): Tesla's Megapack and energy storage business is a major broad incumbent in utility-scale battery storage, deploying lithium-ion systems globally to utilities and developers. Tesla is not a direct A-CAES competitor, but its scale, cost trajectory, and procurement relationships set the competitive ceiling that any LDES technology — including Hydrostor's A-CAES — must beat on price to win utility procurement.
• Fluence Energy: Fluence Energy is a publicly listed global leader in grid-scale battery energy storage, with deep utility and ISO relationships and a broad portfolio of lithium-ion and software-enabled storage products. While Fluence's core product is lithium-ion rather than A-CAES, it is the most relevant broad incumbent competing for the same long-duration storage procurement dollars that Hydrostor targets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@Hydrostor
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hydrostor-inc-
• Xx.com/hydrostor

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles19 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds17 records

Investors21 records

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hydrostor