Dive Brief:
- Carrier Global Corp. has agreed to help develop and commercialize AirJoule, a dehumidification and cooling technology for HVAC systems from Montana Technologies that Carrier called “transformational.”
- The AirJoule technology provides evaporative cooling by harvesting thermal energy and water from air, in some cases without refrigerants. It has the potential to cut electricity consumption by roughly 75% compared with conventional HVAC systems, Montana Technologies says.
- Carrier has also conditionally pledged a $10 million growth equity investment in the commercialization of AirJoule. The agreement potentially gives Carrier the exclusive right to commercialize AirJoule across HVAC systems in the Americas for three years, according to a separate Jan. 8 news release from Montana.
Dive Insight:
Montana Technologies’ partnership with Carrier and the latter’s investment in it demonstrate both companies’ commitment to “reducing energy consumption, cost and carbon footprint,” Montana CEO Matt Jore said in the news releases. The agreement follows Montana’s partnerships with chemical producer BASF and lithium-ion electric battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co.
Last June, Montana announced it will combine with Power & Digital Infrastructure Acquisition II Corp., or XPDB, and list on the NASDAQ pending completion of the merger. That transaction is expected to be finalized in the first quarter of this year. Carrier will receive the right to nominate a member to the board of directors of the merged company, the release said.
“At Carrier, we are committed to investing in both sustainable and disruptive solutions that will better our planet for generations to come,” Ajay Agrawal, chief strategy officer and senior vice president of business development and global services at Carrier, said in the release. “Our partnership with Montana Technologies, and our future collaboration to commercialize its AIrJoule technology, marks another step forward in this commitment.”
