Grants received from the Department of Energy and the State of South Carolina will help to fund the manufacturing ramp up
Anderson, SC, Oct. 25, 2023 — Today, Mojave Energy Systems, founded to change the nature of air conditioning, announced it will soon begin manufacturing its ArctiDry product in Anderson, South Carolina. Mojave’s novel liquid desiccant technology uses half the energy and 20% less refrigerant than comparable incumbent HVAC products to provide buildings with fresh, cool, dry outdoor air.
In September, Mojave won a competitive $2.6M grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to support manufacturing scale-up and initial pilot projects. Mojave has selected Anderson, South Carolina as the location for these operations. Mojave will invest more than $4M and create at least 200 high-paying, clean-energy manufacturing jobs over the next five years.
“Cleantech is a growing manufacturing opportunity for our country and Mojave is in a unique position to create U.S. jobs while significantly lowering its customers’ energy expenses and climate impact,” said Phil Farese, Mojave’s CEO. “We appreciate the support of the Department of Energy, the state of South Carolina, and Anderson County to help us bring this important technology to market.”
The South Carolina Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved Mojave’s project as part of its Enterprise Program, under which Mojave will be eligible for up to $5 million in job development credits and other incentives including employment training services from readySC. In addition, Anderson County has granted Mojave access to its county-owned business incubator and additional local tax incentives.
“Anderson County’s labor market, real estate availability, and proximity to major highways and the Greer Inland Port, were all important factors in our selection process,” said Robert Fancher, Mojave’s vice president of manufacturing. “It is exciting to see this innovative technology that originated in a U.S. R&D lab, transfer into a U.S. manufacturing facility right here in South Carolina.”
Mojave’s patented ArctiDry technology uses a high concentration salt solution to passively pull water from air. The cool, dry air is then delivered to the building, and the water-saturated liquid desiccant is reused by “regenerating” it (returning it to its useful high salinity state) using only waste heat from the system. This eliminates the need for external sources of heating or cooling. This process achieves double the moisture removal efficiency when compared to the traditional vapor compression units, both reducing cost of operation for customers and helping them achieve Net Zero compliance.
The Mojave system can “drop in” to existing HVAC infrastructure and requires minimal maintenance. Mojave is already running several field pilots and has the commercial rollout of the product slated for January 2024 at the AHR Expo.
About Mojave Energy Systems
Mojave produces novel liquid desiccant systems designed to change the nature of air conditioning by dramatically increasing energy efficiency and reducing the climate impact of AC. Mojave’s patented technology cools and dehumidifies the air, enabling the independent control of dew point and dry bulb. By focusing on dehumidification, lowering energy consumption, reducing refrigerant use, and improving indoor air quality for commercial buildings, Mojave’s ArctiDry product is an ideal solution for Dedicated Outdoor Air Systems (DOAS). When compared to other alternatives on the market, ArctiDry offers a highly reliable, lowest-cost-of-ownership product that reduces energy use by 40 to 60%. Mojave, founded in 2022 to commercialize a decade-long, Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) R&D project, has received seed funding from At One Ventures, Fifth Wall, Xerox Ventures, and others.