Cooling infrastructure is sized for the worst minute of the worst hour.
AI workloads are creating short-duration, high-amplitude cooling spikes that conventional infrastructure isn't designed for. Facilities are oversizing transformers, chillers, and gensets to handle peak events that last minutes. There is a better way.
Transient Spikes
AI training bursts, post-outage rebound, and grid constraint events create cooling demand that spikes hard and fast — then disappears. Conventional plant can't respond at the required speed or power density.
Oversized Infrastructure
When peak cooling lasts minutes, not hours, facilities must size transformers, chillers, and gensets for the worst case — then run at a fraction of capacity 99% of the time. Capital is locked up serving events that rarely occur.
Demand Charge Exposure
A single 15-minute demand spike sets the electricity tariff for an entire billing period. Every unmanaged peak costs real money — every month, for the full contract term.
Generate. Store. Dispatch.
Generate Off-Peak
Ice is generated using CO₂ (R-744), a 100% natural refrigerant with zero global warming potential. Charging occurs during off-peak periods when grid electricity is cheap and grid stress is low.
Store Thermal Energy
Thermal energy is stored in a compact, high-density ice store within a standard 20ft ISO container. No glycol, no exotic compounds — just water and CO₂.
Dispatch at Full Power
Full discharge in 2–3 hours. When a spike arrives, IceCap responds instantly — no warm-up, no ramp delay. The full stored capacity is available from the moment it's needed.
Monitor in Real Time
Dispatch is monitored and controlled in real time. The system responds to demand signals automatically — including AEMO contracted events and FCAS ancillary services.
Without IceCap
With IceCap
Illustrative. Charge and discharge parameters are configurable.
Natural refrigerant. No compromises.
IceCap runs entirely on CO₂ (R-744) — a naturally occurring refrigerant with zero global warming potential. This is not just an environmental choice. It is a future-proofing decision.
PFAS-free by design
Synthetic HFC and HFO refrigerants are under increasing legislative pressure globally due to PFAS contamination risk. IceCap eliminates this risk entirely. There is no PFAS anywhere in the system.
No refrigerant phase-out risk
CO₂ cannot be phased out in the same way synthetic refrigerants can. Facilities using synthetic refrigerants may face retrofit costs as legislation tightens. IceCap customers do not carry that refrigerant transition risk.
No glycol secondary loop
IceCap uses direct two-phase CO₂ heat exchange. That means no secondary glycol loop, no bunding, and no glycol testing or disposal regime. The result is simpler plant and lower operational burden.
Marine and environmentally sensitive sites
Unlike glycol-based systems, IceCap avoids secondary-fluid contamination risk, opening opportunities in marine, coastal, and environmentally sensitive sites where conventional ice storage may be difficult to deploy.
Seven IceCap benefits
Capex Avoidance
Size cooling infrastructure for average load, not worst-case spike. IceCap absorbs burst events, enabling smaller grid connections, transformers, and chiller plant.
High-Power Spike Absorption
Full discharge in 2–3 hours vs 8–10 hours for conventional ice. Optimised for power density (kW/m³), not energy volume. Built for AI training bursts, post-outage rebound, and grid constraint periods.
Thermal Resilience
Instant ride-through on demand. No warm-up. Absorbs post-outage rebound loads — the hardest thermal event a facility faces. Reduces the case for oversized gensets and standby chillers.
Demand Charge Reduction
Absorbs the transient spike before it registers as peak demand. One spike can set the tariff for an entire billing period — IceCap prevents that automatically, every month.
Grid Services Revenue
Demand response (AEMO contracted events), FCAS ancillary services, and RERT reserve payments. The asset earns while standing by.
Modular ISO Container
Standard 20ft format. Hardstand pad, grid connection, and chilled water tie-in only. Retrofit onto existing plant. Scalable by module. Deploy in weeks.
No Glycol
Direct CO₂ two-phase heat exchange. No secondary fluid loop, no bunding, no glycol management or disposal. Marine-safe, ESG-aligned.
Not all ice storage is equal.
| Feature | Conventional Ice Calmac · BAC · EVAPCO | IceCap R-744 · ISO container |
|---|---|---|
| Discharge profile | 8–10 hours | 2–3 hours |
| Optimisation target | Energy (kWh) | Power (kW) |
| Transient spike handling | Limited | Full spike absorption |
| Glycol required | Yes | No |
| Refrigerant | HFC / HFO (PFAS risk) | CO₂ — natural, zero GWP |
| Deployment | Site-built | ISO container |
| Power density | Low | High |
We optimise for kW, not kWh.
Built for the hardest cooling problems.
Data Centres & Colocation
Absorb burst cooling loads from high-density compute racks. Reduce infrastructure sizing. Enable higher rack densities without overbuilding chiller plant.
AI Compute Facilities
Training and inference workloads create hard thermal spikes. IceCap is purpose-built for the high-amplitude, short-duration profile of modern AI infrastructure.
Industrial Process Cooling
Load shift cooling demand away from peak grid periods. Support continuous processes with transient peak absorption — without oversizing primary refrigeration plant.
Turbine Inlet Cooling
Pre-cool inlet air during peak demand periods to improve turbine output and efficiency. Deploy rapidly with the ISO container format — no civil works required.
Commercial Refrigeration
Demand charge reduction for large commercial cold stores and distribution centres. The modular format scales to the load without site-built refrigeration systems.