Dutch energy storage pioneer Elestor has announced the appointment of Pieter Pijper as its Chief Financial Officer (CFO).
Pijper’s industry-leading expertise will help Elestor accelerate the commercialisation of the company’s groundbreaking hydrogen bromine flow battery – energy storage technology that promises to expedite the clean energy transition.
Speaking on the appointment, said Guido Dalessi, CEO of Elestor, commented: “Pieter’s skills, experience and proven judgement mean he is ideally suited to take on the task as we step up to the next level of professionalism.
“Elestor is already well funded as investors have increased their commitments significantly in recent months, but there will obviously be further funding rounds soon to finance our ultra-rapid growth.
“During this coming phase, Pieter’s ability to keep a close eye on the numbers will be more important than ever.”
Pieter’s impressive industry expertise will help drive Elestor forward
Pijper has extensive experience as a CFO and as a supervisory board member of large international corporations.
He has undertaken fund-raising and initial public offerings (IPOs) preparations during corporate growth phases and has been instrumental in complex mergers and partnership agreements.
Pijper explained: “I have spent my entire career working with passionate experts in technical environments, usually for very large corporations. I expect my time at Elestor will be similar in that it will coincide with an evolution from a relatively small to a very large company.
“This growth will be essential, not because size is a goal in itself, but instead because Elestor will need to become very large quite quickly in order to help power society’s transition from fossil fuels to clean energy.”
Elestor’s energy storage technology enticed Pieter to the role
Pijper was attracted by Elestor’s ambitions to create a clean energy system through its innovative hydrogen bromine flow battery.
License to operate Long-term, large-scale energy storage will be vital to the energy transition, which is why he has also invested privately in Elestor.
Pijper said: “Elestor clearly has a license to operate as it is devoted to a well-defined mission that will benefit a wide array of stakeholders, including the general public, current and future employees, investors and, of course, our customers.
“I look forward to becoming an active contributor to Elestor’s journey towards becoming a huge, international company with an enormously positive impact on the climate as well as on the environment more broadly.”
How does Elestor’s hydrogen bromine flow battery work?
Elestor’s flow batteries contain hydrogen and bromide, which are both abundant materials. This makes a truly global energy transition possible without resulting in geopolitical disputes over scarce resources. The closed system is simple. A membrane separates the two chemicals.
When charging, a chemical redox reaction starts, and an ion exchange occurs through the membrane, resulting in an electric current. During discharge, the chemical reaction is reversed. This process will often deliver the lowest levelised cost of energy storage.
