Aqua-Cell Energy Advances Flow Battery Development with Support from Alberta Innovates
October 15, 2025
Aqua-Cell Energy, an emerging leader in flow battery technology for energy storage, is excited to announce the launch of several key pilot projects designed to demonstrate the reliability and scalability of its innovative flow battery systems. With the support of Alberta Innovates, the Ministry of Technology and Innovation, and the Government of Alberta, these projects will play a critical role in advancing Aqua-Cell’s mission to revolutionize energy storage for both commercial and industrial applications.
The pilot projects include a major installation in Medicine Hat, as part of the Energy Innovation Challenge—co-hosted by Decentralised Energy Canada (DEC) and the City of Medicine Hat. This project will feature Aqua-Cell’s first shipping container-sized battery, designed to provide long-duration energy storage, and demonstrate the ability to deliver reliable and sustainable solutions for utility applications.
Aqua-Cell is also working closely with Alberta utilities, with additional funding support from Alberta Innovates’ Clean Energy program, which awarded $400,000 to help prepare and scale the technology for upcoming pilot deployments. This project represents a critical step in building out Aqua-Cell’s battery management system and demonstrating the scalability of its flow battery technology, offering a more durable and cost-effective alternative to traditional energy storage systems.
“These pilot projects are an exciting milestone for Aqua-Cell as we work to validate our technology in real-world energy environments,” says Keith Cleland, CEO of Aqua-Cell Energy. “The successful installation and operation of our first shipping container-sized battery will demonstrate that our flow battery technology works long-term and can operate autonomously, meeting the critical energy needs for electric distribution utilities.”
The Medicine Hat pilot will run until August 2026, generating valuable performance data throughout the project. These results will inform opportunities for additional deployments within the city and support Aqua-Cell’s broader commercialization strategy, reinforcing the company’s path toward large-scale, long-duration energy storage across Alberta and beyond.
“Field pilots allow us to validate our technology under real-world conditions,” says Ellsworth Bell, Co-Founder and CTO of Aqua-Cell Energy. “They are an important step in maturing our product and bringing low-cost, long-duration energy storage to market.”
Grid Modernization with Salt-Water Flow Batteries
Aqua-Cell Energy’s novel salt-water flow battery offers electricity grid operators and industrial customers a cost-effective way store energy for period of 12 hours or more.
Project at a Glance
- Funding Recipient: Aqua-Cell Energy Inc.
- Funding Awarded: $400,000
- Project Duration: Feb 1, 2025 – May 31, 2026
- Program: Energy Storage and Minerals
With unprecedented growth of electricity demand, the need for safe, low-cost energy storage solutions is growing to support stability, reliability and affordability of electricity supply, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the electricity system. Aqua-Cell Energy’s novel salt-water flow battery offers electricity grid operators and industrial customers a cost-effective way store energy for period of 12 hours or more. The objective of this project is to design, build and validate a fully operational and automated battery system that can communicate with an electricity microgrid. The project paves the way for field pilots with distribution system owners/operators.
- Design and assemble containerized battery pilot, complete with sensors and controls, to test on the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) Centre for Grid Innovation 50 kW micro-grid.
- NAIT’s Centre for Sensors and Systems Integration (CSSI) will build the control system and interface in a parallel, out of scope project.
- Complete necessary certifications and stamped engineering drawings in preparation for next phase of development.
- Complete a battery system Unit ready for integration into a shipping container to be deployed in Alberta for the first field pilots.
To learn more about Aqua-Cell Energy, visit www.aqua-cellenergy.com.
