United Airlines funds battery makers to reduce ground-operations emissions
United Airlines has invested in battery-manufacturer Natron Energy with an eye toward eventually using its sodium-ion batteries in airport ground equipment and further reducing the airline's overall carbon emissions.
One-third of the Chicago-based carrier's more than 12,000 pieces of motorised ground equipment are electric. Natron's batteries, which are built in Holland, Michigan, could potentially be used to charge electric ground equipment like pushback tractors and other operations at airport gates, as well as electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, United says.
Natron plans to use the funds invested by United to accelerate production at its manufacturing facility. It intends to "scale operations to begin mass production of UL-listed sodium-ion batteries in 2023". United did not disclose the amount of its investment in Natron.
"Out of the gate, we primarily focused on technology designed to help reduce carbon emissions from our airplanes," United Airlines Ventures president Michael Leskinen states.
"Natron's cutting-edge sodium-ion batteries presented an ideal opportunity to both potentially expand our sustainability investment portfolio to our ground operations, and to help make our airport operations more resilient."
Earlier in November, United invested in a Port Westward, Oregon-based biofuel refinery developed by Next Renewable Fuels that is set to begin producing sustainable aviation fuel in 2026.