Form Energy presents 100‑hour iron‑air battery and a low‑temperature iron‑making method, highlights Minnesota pilots

Form Energy representatives told the Energy Finance and Policy Committee that the company’s iron‑air batteries — designed to deliver multi‑day energy storage — and a newly reported electrochemical iron‑making method could broaden Minnesota’s role in long‑duration storage and low‑emissions iron production. Jason Houck, Form Energy’s policy director, and Joe Mansour of Form Futures presented the update before lawmakers.

Form Energy said its iron‑air batteries operate by reversibly converting iron and iron oxide and can sustain discharge for multiple days. "These are 100‑hour duration iron batteries," Jason Houck said, adding the chemistry is intrinsically safe because it lacks the thermal‑runaway mechanism that can affect lithium‑ion systems. The company described modular packs intended for utility‑scale deployment.

The presenters highlighted a Minnesota demonstration: a 1.5‑megawatt, 150‑megawatt‑hour pilot with Great River Energy in Cambridge and said additional Minnesota work follows a broader U.S. rollout. "We shipped our first commercial system to the pilot site this past fall," Houck said, and remaining packs are scheduled for delivery later this year.

Mansour described a laboratory discovery of a low‑temperature, electricity‑driven route to produce high‑purity metallic iron from lower‑grade ores. He said the process runs below 100°C, uses only electricity, produces oxygen as the principal byproduct and yields a powder suitable for both battery feedstock and steelmaking. "The only other byproduct from this process is pure oxygen," he said, noting removed impurities could be sold to cement or chemical markets.

The presenters said the firm is working with the Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI) and that those projects received legislative and Department of Commerce funding to test Minnesota taconite and other domestic feedstocks. They described a staged scale plan: early engineering to about 50 metric tons per year, a pilot around 5,000 t/yr and an initial commercial demonstration module of 25,000 t/yr, with a target first commercial demonstration facility in 2030.

Lawmakers pressed presenters on degradation, recycling, siting and cost. On longevity, the company said system energy capacity falls modestly over decades but remains adequate for grid reliability. On recycling and end‑of‑life, Form Energy said the battery is highly recyclable and that iron retains value at end of life. The company described siting its first factory in Weirton, West Virginia, citing existing industrial infrastructure and workforce experience, and said domestic manufacturing and supply‑chain localization are core goals.

On cost, Form Energy reiterated a target for full commercial scale in the 2030s: a total installed cost near $20 per kilowatt‑hour on a 100‑hour basis — roughly $2,000 per kilowatt at 100‑hour duration. Presenters said achieving that figure depends on manufacturing scale and feedstock specification work to be completed over the next two years.

The presentation closed with committee members seeking more granular modeling and cost analyses; presenters offered to provide additional data to staff. The committee then moved on to legislative business.

The committee discussion is ongoing; the presentation served primarily to inform legislators on technology status, Minnesota pilot activity, and research efforts on domestic feedstocks.