Wind energy startup AirLoom, in which Bill Gates invested, receives additional funding of $12 million

American startup AirLoom Energy plans to implement a new approach to wind energy. The company has received $12 million in funding from 21 anonymous investors, TechCrunch reports.

Instead of placing massive turbines on top of 100-meter towers, AirLoom plans to attach vertical blades to cables that form an oval. The structure will be only 25 meters high. The company hopes to generate electricity at a price of $13 per megawatt-hour (MWh), which will be more than 50% cheaper than traditional onshore wind power.

The efficiency of modern wind turbines depends on their size. But huge towers and blades are difficult to transport, sometimes requiring up to a year of advance planning. AirLoom gets around this problem, because a larger wind turbine requires more cable and blades.

AirLoom last raised $4 million in November from Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, and MCJ Collective. At the same time, the company appointed a new CEO, Neil Rickner, who previously worked as chief operating officer of Alphabet’s Makani Energy.

In November, Rickner reported that the company’s next step would be to improve the technology and build a 1 megawatt pilot project in 2026.