Two important coups for Skeleton Technologies, the German-Estonian ultracapacitor manufacturer, in the past weeks.

The first was the opening at the end of March of a new production line in Saxony, Germany capable of producing up to 4 million supercaps a year. It will be the largest of its kind in Europe.

“The investment that we were able to make in expanding our production line here is indicative of the demand that we are seeing for ultracapacitors from a huge variety of industries, including the automotive sector, power grids, heavy transport and haulage,” said CEO Taavi Madiberk.

The second coup was the signing of a €15 million ($16 million) loan with the European Investment Bank in February. “This is a milestone for the company,” said Madiberk.

Jan Vapaavuori, a vice president for the European Investment Bank, said: “The EIB financing will provide Skeleton with a powerful financial boost to accelerate production, R&D and commercial development with a view to deploying its graphene-based ultracapacitors not only across the European continent, but also globally.

“It will allow the company to fully exploit its leading scientific knowledge in the field, gain critical mass and become significant in a market with huge potential. Given Skeleton’s cutting-edge technology and the eco-friendliness of its products, it’s only logical that EIB supports such European innovators.”

The company says its patented graphene based ultracapacitors provide four times higher power density and up to two times higher energy density than its closest competitors.