Lightning struck for AgTech startup Nitricity—20M times.
That’s right, Nitricity, a U.S. startup changing nitrogen fertilizer production, announced last week it had closed its Series A funding round with a fine $20M.
It’s electric: Maybe you’re familiar with how nitrogen is typically produced today, or maybe you aren’t. But it involves a substantial amount of fossil fuels and costly transportation.
Enter Nitricity, which quite literally electrifies and distributes nitrogen fertilizer production. It uses a new kind of technology that harnesses low-cost solar or wind for regionalized nutrient production.
Simply put: they make their own lightning.
First an irrigation pump extension is installed in a container on the farm. This container takes electricity from a nearby solar array, “containerizes the lightning produced, and then uses it to produce fixed nitrogen in a solution with water.”
This produces nitric acid, which is neutralized with limestone or potassium hydroxide.
Finally, the solution is injected into the farm’s existing irrigation system.
It’s a win-win for the environment and farmers. Natural production, sans fossil fuels—plus lower costs for farmers who can fix their nitrogen right on their farms.
Nitricity has performed trials on tomatoes, broccoli, and yellow bell peppers. They have completed initial trials in wheat.
Soundbite: “Nitricity’s decentralized approach to manufacturing fertilizers using just air, water and renewables-based electricity was born out of a vision to completely transform a 100-year-old industry, and we are excited to be partnering with them,” Rajesh Swaminathan, a partner at Khosla, said.
This electrifyin’ technology is two years away from the market.