Nostromo’s IceBrick ice battery tech expands to NYC as grid-friendly cooling solution; slashes energy costs by 30%, avoids polluting peaker plants using water-based storage, deployed via unique service model.
If we can trap the sun in solar panels and the wind in turbines, why not freeze time – quite literally – with ice? In the sweltering summers of New York City, a new kind of battery does just that.
A quiet revolution is underway in the basements and rooftops of New York City’s commercial towers. As the summer heat begins to strain the city’s aging power grid, a new kind of battery—one that stores cold instead of electricity—is making its mark.
These so-called “ice batteries” are changing the way buildings stay cool and are rapidly becoming a go-to technology for developers seeking to cut energy bills, lower emissions, and reduce blackout risks. At the forefront of this transformation stands a small company from Kibbutz Shdema in Israel: Nostromo Energy.
At Eleven Madison, one of Manhattan’s landmark office towers, hundreds of thousands of pounds of ice are produced every night four floors underground. The ice is not meant for drinks—it is used to cool the building the following day.
By freezing water at night when electricity is cheap and abundant, and then circulating its chill during the day when demand and prices spike, the building avoids tapping into the grid when it’s under the most pressure. According to Trane Technologies, which installed the system, the savings can reach up to 40% on cooling costs.
This strategy—shifting energy use from peak to off-peak hours—is not new. But until recently, it was largely confined to industrial-scale operations or research labs. Now, a growing number of commercial buildings, hospitals, hotels, and even municipal facilities are adopting thermal storage systems. At the center of this surge is Nostromo Energy, which has become one of the leading names in ice-based thermal storage.
Nostromo was founded by Yaron Ben Nun, an Israeli designer, filmmaker, and former fighter pilot with a passion for clean energy. The son of former Israeli Air Force commander Avihu Ben Nun, he came to energy storage after a decade of environmental advocacy and industrial design. Frustrated by the lack of clean and scalable cooling storage technologies, Ben Nun and his engineering team developed a new system: the ״IceBrick״.
Each IceBrick unit contains hundreds of capsules filled with water, which freezes during hours of low electricity demand. Later, the stored ice cools the building’s central HVAC system without consuming electricity during peak hours.
Unique design, eco-friendly power
The system’s modular design—described by the company as “Lego-like”—allows it to be installed on rooftops, inside mechanical rooms, or along exterior walls in both horizontal and vertical arrangements, adapting to even the tightest urban spaces.
Unlike lithium-ion batteries, the IceBrick system is entirely water-based, non-toxic, and non-flammable. Water also doesn’t degrade over time. “In theory, you can freeze and thaw water forever,” noted Allison Mahvi, a mechanical engineering professor at the University of Wisconsin.
The only components subject to wear are the pumps and valves, which can last decades. Technically speaking, it takes 80 times more energy to freeze a gram of water than to heat it by one degree Celsius—a fact that gives ice batteries tremendous energy density for cooling applications.
Since launching its operations in the U.S., Nostromo has secured high-profile partnerships. Its technology is already operating at two of California’s most iconic hotels—the Beverly Hilton and Waldorf Astoria—as part of a shared 1.4 MWh system that has been credited with reducing carbon emissions by over 200 metric tons annually.
A broader deployment is underway in California, where the company is in advanced negotiations for a $189 million loan from the U.S. Department of Energy to install IceBrick systems in over 120 buildings. In 2023, the system became the first thermal storage technology to qualify as a demand-response resource by the California Public Utilities Commission.
Now, Nostromo is bringing its technology to New York. The state’s dense urban infrastructure and volatile energy pricing make it an ideal proving ground. New York’s grid often struggles during late-afternoon summer hours, when air conditioning demand surges just as solar generation dips.
Buildings like the 43-story Goldman Sachs headquarters, which installed an ice storage system in 2014, have reported up to 30% energy savings — over $50,000 per month in peak season.
“The potential here is enormous,” said Nostromo CEO Yoram Ashery. “Air conditioning is the single largest source of electricity demand during peak hours, and our solution directly addresses that.” According to the International Energy Agency, cooling accounts for about 20% of global building energy consumption—but can exceed 70% during peak times in hot climates.
By enabling buildings to consume less energy during those critical hours, ice batteries not only reduce costs but help utilities avoid triggering polluting backup generators known as peaker plants.
The environmental benefits are clear: unlike lithium extraction, which has serious ecological and ethical concerns, ice batteries use water—abundant, safe, and fully recyclable. “You’re never going to power a lightbulb with ice,” said one engineer. “But you might eliminate the need for fossil-fuel peaker plants just by cooling smarter.”
Another key to the system’s market success lies in Nostromo’s business model. Rather than selling its systems outright, the company offers them as a service. Building owners pay no upfront capital costs. Instead, Nostromo installs and maintains the units and collects monthly service fees over a 20-year period, based on a percentage of the building’s energy savings and revenues from grid participation.
Continue reading at the source (ynetnews.com)
Key Updates:
- Nostromo Energy received a $305.54M conditional commitment from the U.S. Department of Energy in December 2024 for Project IceBrick
- The company’s IceBrick Innovation Center was named “2024 Outstanding Energy Project” by ASCE Metropolitan
- Expansion plans now include up to 193 commercial buildings across California
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