SparkzCore22 Announcement: From factory floor to power grid – Sparkz launches first U.S.-built battery system 

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 

media@sparkz.energy 

Sacramento, CA– May 6, 2026 

From factory floor to power grid: Sparkz launches first U.S.-built battery system 

Sparkz unveiled its new U.S.-manufactured battery system today that will help power homes, businesses, schools while taking the burden off the strained power grid. 

The global move toward sustainable energy is no longer about technology, it’s a race to scale manufacturing and secure supply chains. Sparkz is pulling ahead by delivering solutions with SparkzCore22. The new battery system is enabling AI data centers to store 25% more power into the same footprint. 

To kick off Sacramento Climate Week, Sparkz debuted the SparkzCore22 at the MAP (Metro Air Parkway) facility, with a media tour Wednesday. 

SparkzCore22 follows a “BYOB model: Bring Your Own Batteries”, allowing customers to plug in scalable battery storage that can power homes, support businesses, or connect into a Virtual Power Plant to strengthen the grid. 

CEO and Founder, Sanjiv Malhotra and the Sparkz team demonstrated the SparkzCore22 using US-Made Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries, which deliver a safer, longer-lasting alternative than traditional batteries. The system stores energy in advanced batteries and delivers it on demand, bringing solutions to Virtual Power Plants (VPP) for supporting Data centers and AI infrastructure across the country. 

“Energy demand is growing rapidly, and the grid needs smarter, more resilient solutions, said Malhotra. “We are the only LFP battery manufacturer in the U.S. establishing those solutions with the SparkzCore22.” 

The cobalt-free battery system is designed to: 

  • Power homes and businesses with reliable, scalable energy storage 
  • Enable Virtual Power Plants (VPP) 
  • Support grid stability by balancing supply and demand 
  • Advance U.S. manufacturing with domestically produced battery technology 

This is the Sparkz way. 

The only company succeeding in establishing the LFP battery ecosystem in the US. We are making this from scratch–high-performance material made from abundant American materials, such as lithium, iron, phosphate, Cells and the complete Battery system. 

MEDIA CONTACT: 

Michelle Bandur

Sparkz VP of Marketing and Communications

(279) 208-4672

michelle@sparkz.energy 

Founder & CEO

Dr. Sanjiv Malhotra

Dr. Sanjiv Malhotra is the founder and CEO of Sparkz—the battery start-up reinventing the energy supply chain.

 

Malhotra has been a leader in the energy sector for nearly three decades as a founder, investor and executive. Most recently, he served as the inaugural director for the Energy Investor Center at the U.S Department of Energy (DOE), serving under both Democratic and Republican administrations.

 

At DOE, Malhotra led the Obama Administration’s initiative to boost public-private partnerships to accelerate the commercialization of technologies developed in national research centers like Oak Ridge National Labs.

 

Malhotra was recruited to the Department of Energy after a successful exit of Oorja Protonics—the world leader in methanol fuel cells—which he founded and led as CEO for 10 years. Oorja raised $50 Million in equity financing from leading VCs such as Sequoia, DAG Ventures, Artis Capital and others during his tenure. He boosted Oorja’s revenue and profitability growth, while expanding operations globally in Japan, China, South Africa, Mexico, and India.

 

Oorja was acquired in 2014 by the Private Equity firm MinXing Growth Fund.

 

As an investor and consultant, Malhotra has worked at leading venture capital firms, including Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers as an advisor on clean energy and advanced materials.

 

Earlier in his career, Malhotra led the engineering and product development team at H Power, a pioneer in hydrogen fuel cells. As part of the management team, he managed the successful IPO, which raised more than $100 million in August 2000.

 

He began his career as a post-doctoral fellow at the renowned Lawrence Berkeley National Labs on electrochemical storage systems. Dr. Malhotra has authored seven patents and more than 40 publications in various fields of energy storage technology and materials. He holds a PhD in chemical engineering and an M.B.A from University of Iowa.