Energy Vault
Energy Vault builds grid-scale battery storage systems, having dropped its gravity-block tech.
On the record
Checkpoint: Q2 2026 earnings call with backlog and SOSA financing updates
The call
Energy Vault now competes on lithium-ion storage economics against much larger, cheaper-capital rivals, with its AI-datacenter power pitch still unproven.
Energy Vault sells lithium-ion battery storage systems to store and supply electricity, mostly to power grids and data centers. The company abandoned its original gravity-based idea and now competes in a crowded market where Tesla (Megapack), CATL, and established utilities can build the same thing cheaper and faster because they have more money and better credit. Energy Vault is still losing money ($103.6 million in 2025) and keeps needing new funding, so the real shift would be if they either found a way to cut costs drastically or locked in long-term contracts that guarantee steady profits regardless of competition.
Why
01
AI pressure: None apparent. AI does not threaten the storage hardware business; Energy Vault instead pitches itself as a power supplier to AI data centers. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.
02
Bigger players: Tesla Megapack, Fluence, CATL, BYD, Sungrow, and utilities like NextEra and Brookfield. These larger players already sell lithium-ion storage at scale with cheaper capital, competing directly in Energy Vault's now-core battery IPP market. Could a giant copy it? Yes, easily.
03
What protects it. A $1.35B project backlog and fast revenue growth give it runway, but thin 15-25% margins leave little room for error.
What would change this call
Energy Vault's Q2 2026 earnings call on Aug 11, 2026 discloses backlog conversion detail. Shows whether the $1.35B backlog is converting to real revenue or stalling.
SOSA project financing targeted to close Q2 2026. Tests whether Energy Vault can fund large projects without more dilutive capital raises.
Stoney Creek 125MW/1GWh project reaches completion in H2 2026 on schedule. Would show execution parity with lower-cost incumbents like Fluence or Tesla.
SOSA project financing targeted to close Q2 2026. Tests whether Energy Vault can fund large projects without more dilutive capital raises.
Stoney Creek 125MW/1GWh project reaches completion in H2 2026 on schedule. Would show execution parity with lower-cost incumbents like Fluence or Tesla.
Key numbers
- FY2025 revenue $203.7M, up 340% y/y
- FY2025 net loss of $103.6M
- Q1 2026 revenue missed consensus by ~40% ($21.9M vs $36.3M)
Named risks
- Continued GAAP losses ($103.6M FY2025, $32.5M Q1 2026) with only 15-25% guided gross margins.
- Revenue forecasting misses, as seen in Q1 2026 revenue coming in ~40% below consensus.
- Competing for BESS/IPP contracts against vastly larger, lower-cost-of-capital incumbents like Tesla and NextEra.
- Dependence on serial capital raises, including a $150M convertible note issued February 2026.
- Stock volatility and short-seller scrutiny history (Bleecker Street, Dec 2022), 52-week range $1.02 to $6.65.
Rivals, as read in July 2026
| Rival | Direction | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Tesla (Megapack) | losing to | Far larger lithium-BESS incumbent with cheaper capital as of 2026 |
| NextEra Energy | losing to | $150B+ company with structurally lower cost of capital than Energy Vault's ~$589M market cap, July 2026 |
| Fluence Energy | contesting | Direct competitor in lithium-ion BESS/IPP project bidding as of 2026 |
| CATL, BYD, Sungrow | losing to | Larger battery manufacturers/incumbents in commodity lithium-BESS market |
| Eos Energy, ESS Inc. | gaining on | Energy Vault reported financially 'best off' among the three non-lithium storage peers, March 2024 |
Questions people ask
- Is Energy Vault profitable in 2026?
- No. Energy Vault posted a GAAP net loss of $103.6 million for FY2025 and a Q1 2026 net loss of $32.5 million, with gross margins guided at just 15 to 25 percent for FY2026, per its own March and May 2026 financial results filings.
- Who are Energy Vault's biggest competitors?
- Energy Vault competes against far larger, cheaper-capital players in lithium-ion battery storage and power generation, including Tesla (Megapack), CATL, BYD, Sungrow, Fluence, and utilities like NextEra Energy, which dwarf Energy Vault's roughly $589 million market cap as of July 24, 2026.
- Is Energy Vault's revenue growing?
- Yes, FY2025 revenue reached $203.7 million, up over 340 percent year-over-year, driven by projects in Australia and the US. However, Q1 2026 revenue of $21.9 million missed consensus estimates by about 40 percent, per the company's May 5, 2026 results.
- Is Energy Vault still building gravity energy storage?
- Energy Vault has largely shifted away from selling gravity IP toward an Own and Operate Asset Vault model owning lithium-ion battery storage assets for recurring revenue, with over 80 percent of its $1.35 billion May 2026 backlog now tied to this IPP model rather than gravity systems.
- Is Energy Vault a safe stock or company to join in 2026?
- Energy Vault carries high volatility, with its stock ranging from $1.02 to $6.65 over 52 weeks and a history of a December 2022 short-seller attack by Bleecker Street Research (later retracted in May 2023), reflecting ongoing scrutiny of its complex backlog and contract disclosures.
- How is Energy Vault connected to the AI data center boom?
- Energy Vault rebranded itself in 2026 as a provider of 'AI compute infrastructure solutions,' positioning its battery storage assets as power supply for AI data centers and seeking a valuation re-rating toward digital infrastructure multiples, per a July 16, 2026 company announcement naming a new CFO to support this pivot.
Timeline
- 2026-07-16Appoints Nitin Dahiya, ex-BlackRock, as CFO effective July 27, 2026 to support AI-infrastructure pivot
- 2026-06-29Energy Vault joins the Russell 2000 Index
- 2026-05-27Closes acquisition of 850 MW BESS development portfolio in Japan from BayWa r.e. AG
- 2026-05-05Reports Q1 2026 revenue of $21.9M, missing consensus by about 40 percent, reaffirms FY2026 guidance
- 2026-03-17Reports FY2025 revenue of $203.7M (up 340% y/y) and $103.6M GAAP net loss
- 2026-02Closes upsized $150M 5.250% Senior Convertible Notes offering due 2031
- 2026-02Signs supply agreement with Peak Energy for 1.5 GWh of US-made sodium-ion battery systems
- 2023-05-15Short seller Bleecker Street Research issues retractions of its December 2022 report
- 2022-02-14Begins trading on NYSE under ticker NRGV after SPAC merger with Novus Capital Corporation II
Revision history
25 July 2026
First assessed. Losing its protection. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.
In the same band
Sources