Battery storage provider Viridi recently acquired the former Moxion Power facility in Richmond at auction for $7 million and will employ 75 people there, according to news reports and a statement from Viridi.
The Buffalo-based company also secured a $9.3 million grant from the California Energy Commission (CEC) to reportedly upgrade technologies at the facility at 1411 Harbour Way South.
Viridi creates mobile battery energy storage systems (BESS) as an alternative to diesel generators for a wide range of commercial and industrial purposes. It is taking over the facility from mobile BESS maker Moxion Power, which filed for bankruptcy and shuttered last year after building out the facility in 2022.
Viridi described moving into the Richmond facility as a strategic effort to establish its presence on both U.S. coasts. In a report by Latitude Media, Jon M. Williams, CEO of Viridi, is quoted as stating that Moxion “vetted out all the issues in the market that we were able to solve for with our unit, and really helped us build a better unit.”
David Hochschild, chair of the California Energy Commission, said Viridi’s approach to energy storage “aligns with California’s commitment to advancing safe, sustainable and resilient energy solutions.”