Storage for Change: How Ido Ben-Yehuda and Augwind Are Powering the Energy Transition
What makes someone leave a career in the defence industry to dive headfirst into the world of sustainable energy? For Ido Ben-Yehuda, it wasn’t just a career move – it was a personal reset. Today, he’s responsible for international market development at Augwind Energy, promoting a technology that’s turning heads: the AirBattery – an electromechanical storage system that uses water, compressed air and smart engineering to give the energy transition the push it needs. In this interview, Ben-Yehuda talks about his unconventional journey, how Augwind has shifted its strategy, and why underground caverns could play a key role in Germany’s future energy landscape. And he shares why, sometimes, it’s the courage to change direction that generates the most powerful kind of energy.
What initially attracted you to the energy sector, and how have personal values or early experiences shaped your career—particularly your role at Augwind?
I was always enthusiastic about technological advancements. My early experience was in a sector much different than clean energy. I started my professional career in my early 20s in the defense sector, where I gained most of my experience in marketing, sales and business development. After a decade, I felt that the defense area of business is not where I want to realize my potential. This was not the sector for me to fully dedicate my time, energy and talent. I felt that I want to dedicate myself to promoting solutions in other walks of life rather than defense. With that notion, I was part of a deep-tech startup in the field of optical wireless communication, we has a wild ride for couple of years but it seems that the technology was (and still is) ahead of it’s time to shine…Than, in 2020, I was approached by a friend that was working at Augwind at the time, and I got to learn about what the company is doing, and about the energy storage sector in general. I was fascinated by this emerging new technological landscape and was fortunate enough to join the company and be part of that effort. To me, on a personal level, promoting a much needed, sustainable energy solution today is a symbolic completion of the cycle in my career as a marketer.
In my role at Augwind I get to implement and execute the earlier experience I gained in promoting technological solutions, especially in B2B / B2G environment. I believe that it is all about interpersonal dynamics, transparency, and finding the mutual point of interest. It is a privilege to bring those together around a technology that is meant to make reality better.
What personal goals are you pursuing in your current position, and how do you define or measure success for yourself?
Since I personally acknowledge the need for clean, sustainable assets that will provide society with energy-security and resilience. And I personally believe that the AirBattery is a candidate well-positioned for that role, with exceptional advantages in terms of environmental impact- So my personal goal naturally becomes the successful commercial deployment of the AirBattery technology, as a viable, almost optimal solution to bridge long periods of renewable underproduction as the transition advances.
How has Augwind’s overall business strategy evolved since its early days, and how has your marketing approach adapted in parallel?
Augwind’s business-strategy evolved significantly, as you might expect in young technology companies in emerging markets…In the early days of the company we aimed to compete with lithium-ion batteries for short-duration projects. Due to the constant improvements and price reduction of lithium-ion batteries, we decided to best explore the technical features of our solution, and to address much longer durations by integrating into an underground cavern. This configuration is limited in terms of potential deployment, meaning that it can’t be deployed everywhere, but in those regions where caverns are available, or even abundant such as in Germany- The AirBattery can play a significant role by providing the capacity and availability needed for deep renewable integration.
What makes the AirBattery stand out from traditional energy storage systems?
The AirBattery is an electro-mechanical system, a novel technical approach that relays on the combination of two proven, mature energy storage technologies- pumped-hydro and CAES (Compressed-Air energy Storage). Like any other CAES, we benefit from the low cost of storage that caverns provide, especially when targeting hundreds of hours of duration.
What differentiates the AirBattery from other type CAES, is that we use hydraulic turbomachinery (i.e. pumps and turbines) instead of air compressors and expanders. We created a process that uses water to generate compressed air and uses compressed air to run the water through pumps and turbines to regenerate electricity. This liquid-piston type mechanism, resulting in a near-isothermal process (with hardly any temperature change), eliminating the need for thermal compensation as in other types of CAES. This enables AirBattery to provide very long duration at a highly competitive cost per kW/h.
Looking at the future of energy infrastructure—particularly with the growth of renewables—what role do you see Augwind playing in the next decade?
We expect to prove, over the next decade, that such long-duration energy storage to balance the grid is not only technically feasible, but economically sound at global scale. Our vision is that AirBattery technology will enable the final push to net zero, by solving the intermittency challenge at scale.
Personally, I’d love to see our technology contributing to all three pillars of the energy triangle – security of supply through long-term backup power, affordability by reducing price volatility and curtailment costs, and sustainability by enabling more effective integration of solar and wind energy. If we’ve helped accelerate the renewable transition while reducing long-term energy costs for industry and households, we succeeded.
Which regions or target markets hold the most growth potential for Augwind right now?
In general, areas with adequate underground geological formations combined with high renewable energy goals represent the biggest opportunity. The AirBattery technology doesn’t rely on critical minerals or complex supply chains, so it can be deployed using locally sourced supplies and labor virtually anywhere with the right geology.
Germany’s redundant salt caverns, industrial leadership, and climate ambition make it the perfect launchpad, but you’re right, the potential is global. Our goal is to become Europe’s preferred partner for multiweek storage solutions, and from there, we see enormous opportunities in regions facing similar challenges with renewable intermittency.
Who is Augwind’s primary customer base today, and how has that evolved over time?
Current Customers of Augwind are mainly industrial manufacturing facilities, that are implementing our proprietary underground chambers for energy savings in industrial compressed air. These are implemented since 2016, but not for energy storage, rather for energy efficiency- Buffering between compressed air generation and its consumption.
For us this is a validation of these chambers as core element of the overall system, being the host of the AirBattery charging & discharging process.
Regarding the AirBattery, as it is still at its pre-commercial stage, this first-of-a-kind project is intended to demonstrate the techno-economical viability of the system in commercial operation. We are in ongoing dialogue with several potential customers and partners, out of which we aim to establish our preliminary customer base for the AirBattery system.
Where do you see yourself and Augwind five years from now? What milestones are you hoping to reach?
We work hard and hope that together at Augwind, we will be able to realize the potential of technology to its fullest extent. In five years from now I expect for a fully operational AirBattery project to be up and running, generating a tangible roadmap for commercial deployment of the system in Europe throughout the next decade. This will be a wonderful accomplishment that I would greatly appreciate being part of.
Are there any new projects, campaigns or partnerships that you’re especially excited about and would like to share with us?
While I can’t announce specific customers yet, I can say that the interest from the German energy sector has been tremendous. We’re currently working closely with a range of stakeholders including local cavern owners, utilities, energy traders, and industrial off-takers to finalize our partnerships.
What advice would you give to young professionals or founders looking to build a career or launch a company in the energy sector?
I would say that if you feel you want to contribute to the advancement of sustainable energy- don’t hold back. The new energy landscape is a fusion of large conservative corporates and much smaller, younger tech companies with an innovative approach. There is much room and demand for young, bright minds that can make a difference. If it is an idea or a solution you think of- I suggest challenging yourself by trying to engage and talk with those that are posed by the problem that you intend to solve. In general, I would say- Be always open to learning and networking, this is an industry with paramount impact on the future and wellbeing of our society.
Finally, what keeps you motivated and energized in your work—what drives you day after day?
What keeps me motivated and drives me at work is the opportunity to be a part of a team, dedicated to bringing a true, much needed breakthrough to the energy marketplace.
The DNA of the company is such that the people I work with are first-of-all great human beings, and on top of that- professional and dedicated to what we do here at Augwind.
The prospects for commercially deploying the AirBattery is at the core of our motivation.
I enjoy the dynamics with my team-mates and colleagues, the combination of good vibes, common goal and being productive together as a team keeps our day-to-day office life energized.
After all, we’re all about storing and generating positive energy.
Photo/Source: Augwind Energy
