NETenergy

What NETenergy does

NETenergy is a Chicago-based thermal energy storage company that has developed proprietary phase-change material technology to store "cold energy" for later use during peak electricity demand periods. The company's flagship product, the Flex-Ice 1000 thermal battery, integrates with rooftop air conditioning units and existing commercial HVAC infrastructure to shift cooling loads from on-peak to off-peak periods, with claimed cost reductions of 50% or more, lower carbon emissions, and reduced reliance on utility peaker plants. The technology originates from research at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where founder and CEO Dr. Said Al-Hallaj is a Professor of Chemical Engineering; the company holds an exclusive license to commercialize that technology.

The company targets three primary customer segments: commercial building operators, data center operators, and industrial cooling facilities (including refrigerated retail and process cooling). NETenergy operates a direct enterprise B2B sales motion with custom project-based pricing and multi-year contracts, and pairs hardware sales of the Flex-Ice 1000 with system integration services. Marketing is partnership-driven, leveraging Department of Energy project selections, university collaborations (notably with the University of Wisconsin-Madison), and industry press coverage to build technical credibility.

NETenergy is structured as NET ENERGY LLC, a privately held company with 1–10 employees. It has secured non-dilutive funding through DOE programs — including a $2M award in September 2024 under a $388M building decarbonization initiative — and previously participated in the Exelon Foundation Climate Change Investment Initiative. Despite these development milestones, the company has not publicly disclosed revenue and remains in an early-commercialization phase relative to its target enterprise customers.

Name

NETenergy

Legal name

NET ENERGY LLC

Website

https://netenergytes.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

NETenergy is a Chicago-based thermal energy storage company selling the Flex-Ice 1000 thermal battery, which uses phase-change materials to shift commercial cooling loads off-peak for data centers, commercial buildings, and industrial facilities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Thermal Energy Storage Systems

NAICS

Ventilation, Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing (33341)

SIC

Air-Cond & Warm Air Heatg Equip & Comm & Indl Refrig Equip (3585)

akta.pro primary industry

Ice Thermal Energy Storage (Chilled Water & Ice Storage for HVAC) (EUAFANAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Demand Response, Load Flexibility & Smart Thermostat Aggregation (EUADAPAM), Energy Storage Systems (BESS, Flywheels, Batteries) (HDABAKAC)

Keywords

• Thermal energy storage
• Thermal battery systems
• Peak demand management
• HVAC integration solutions
• Commercial cooling technology

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Thermal Battery Hardware Sales: Sale of Flex-Ice 1000 thermal battery systems to commercial buildings, data centers, and industrial facilities. Product provides 50%+ cooling cost savings by shifting consumption from on-peak to off-peak periods.
2. System Integration Services: Integration services for seamless installation with existing HVAC systems, refrigeration units, and other cooling infrastructure.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

NETenergy designs, manufactures, and sells the Flex-Ice 1000 thermal battery, a thermal energy storage system that uses phase change materials to store cold energy during off-peak electricity periods and release it during peak demand. The product integrates with existing rooftop HVAC/air conditioning units in commercial buildings, data centers, and industrial cooling facilities to reduce cooling energy costs by 50% or more by shifting consumption from on-peak to off-peak periods.

Product overview

NETenergy offers thermal energy storage solutions centered around the Flex-Ice 1000 thermal battery. The flagship Flex-Ice 1000 product stores cold energy for use during peak electricity demand periods and integrates with existing rooftop air conditioning units, enabling commercial buildings and data centers to reduce cooling costs by 50% or more while lowering carbon emissions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Flex-Ice 1000 Thermal Battery Thermal energy storage system that uses phase change materials to store cold energy during off-peak electricity periods and release it during peak demand. Integrates with existing rooftop HVAC/air conditioning units in commercial buildings, data centers, and industrial cooling facilities to reduce cooling costs by 50% or more by shifting consumption from on-peak to off-peak periods.
• System Integration Services Professional integration services to install the Flex-Ice 1000 thermal battery with existing HVAC systems, refrigeration units, and other cooling infrastructure for commercial and industrial customers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Reduces cooling costs by 50% or more by shifting consumption from on-peak to off-peak periods
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 September 2024Collaborating with DOE on heat pump-thermal energy storage projects as part of $388 million building decarbonization initiative. DOE partnerships validate technology and provide funding for development of cutting-edge thermal storage solutions.
• University of Wisconsin-MadisoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 February 2024Joint research partnership for thermal energy storage in multi-split heat pump systems. Collaboration fosters innovation and translates academic insights into real-world energy solutions.
• Leading Corporate InstitutionsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorking with industry partners to implement thermal storage technology at scale, driving significant energy savings and sustainability improvements across diverse business operations.
• University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDr. Said Al-Hallaj serves as Professor of Chemical Engineering at UIC. Company originated as UIC startup with exclusive license to commercialize thermal energy storage technology developed at the university.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Johnson Controls: Global building technology incumbent offering HVAC, building energy management, and thermal storage integration solutions. Represents the broad competitive set NETenergy faces in commercial building customer accounts.
• Trane Technologies: Global HVAC incumbent offering commercial cooling systems including thermal energy storage products (via CALMAC). Provides competitive context for NETenergy's enterprise sales motion against established full-stack HVAC vendors.
• Carrier: Major HVAC and refrigeration manufacturer with commercial cooling product lines and chillers. Potential competitor and partner in the commercial and data center cooling segments NETenergy targets.

Direct peers

• Ice Energy: Direct competitor offering ice-based thermal energy storage systems for commercial HVAC and peak demand shifting. Closest direct match to NETenergy's Flex-Ice 1000 product and target market of commercial cooling customers.
• CALMAC (Trane Technologies): Long-established manufacturer of ice thermal energy storage tanks for commercial HVAC, now part of Trane. Competes in the same ice TES category for cooling peak demand reduction with broader product portfolio and parent-company distribution.
• Axiom Exergy: Ice battery thermal storage provider for commercial refrigeration, supermarket, and data center cooling. Directly comparable technology approach (refrigerant-based ice storage) and overlapping customer segments.

Emerging players

• Bright Night Energy (formerly EnergyNest): Thermal energy storage company using concrete-based modules for industrial and commercial heat storage. Adjacent technology category (thermal battery) serving overlapping decarbonization use cases for buildings and industry.
• Malta Inc. Developer of pumped heat thermal energy storage for grid-scale applications. Comparable in category positioning as a long-duration thermal storage company pursuing decarbonization, but with different end markets (grid-scale rather than commercial HVAC).
• Rondo Energy: Industrial heat battery provider for high-temperature process heat decarbonization. Comparable in business model (thermal battery as service/product) and DOE-validated positioning, though focused on industrial rather than commercial cooling.
• Brenmiller Energy: Thermal energy storage company using crushed rock-based storage for industrial and utility customers. Competes in the broader thermal battery category and shares the demand-shifting and decarbonization value proposition.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/netenergy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors5 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about NETenergy