ZincFive
Definitive (DA signed)Industrials · nickel-zinc battery manufacturing for data centers · Portland, United States
- What it is
- Design and sell NiZn battery hardware (UPS cabinets, retrofit kits, cells) into data-center UPS and short-duration high-power AI-load applications, with expansion into full energy-storage solutions; proceeds earmarked for growth, commercial deployment and U.S. manufacturing build-out; revenue is product sales against a growing contracted backlog.
- What it’s doing now
- Merging with Spark I Acquisition Corp (SPKL) — definitive (da signed), announced Jun 11, 2026; expected close H2 2026.
- What you should know
- At 9× revenue the deal prices it above its listed peers, which trade at 4.46×. The deal carries a $100M minimum-cash condition — heavy redemptions can break it.
The business, per its filings
SEC primaryZincFive, Inc. (Portland, Oregon area; Delaware corp; CEO Tod Higinbotham, co-founder Tim Hysell now board member/strategic advisor) makes proprietary nickel-zinc battery systems - BC Series UPS battery cabinets (including the BC 2 AI for AI dynamic workloads), NiZn retrofit kits, monoblocs and cylindrical cells - selling immediate/backup power to data centers plus industrial engine-starting and intelligent-transportation niches; the pitch is NiZn's no-thermal-runaway safety, higher power density and smaller footprint versus lead-acid and lithium-ion. Genuinely commercial: FY2025 revenue ~$66.9M (roughly doubled YoY from ~$33M), ~$81M commercial backlog at 2025-12-31, and nearly 2 GW of systems shipped or under contract to 'diversified, blue-chip and hyperscaler customers'. The Spark I Acquisition Corp. deal (BCA 2026-06-11; SparkLabs Group SPAC, CEO/Chairman James Rhee) sets a $600M pre-money equity value (~$752M pro forma EV, ~11x FY2025 revenue), with ~$125M expected gross proceeds (~$100M committed PIPE - in which existing ZincFive holders participate, rolling 100% of their equity - plus ~$25M trust before redemptions); the minimum cash condition is fully satisfied by the PIPE alone; ticker ZFIV; S-4 confidentially submitted 2026-08-13.
| Revenue | $66.9M (FY2025A (per joint deal press release; 'approximately $66.9 million', ~2x 2024)) |
Source: 425, accession 0001104659-26-101062 · as of Dec 31, 2025 · extraction confidence: medium
What the company says about itself
Web research — not auditedzincfive.com is a substantive commercial site: product families with spec pages, chemistry explainers, awards, sustainability section, and an Investor Center already carrying de-SPAC news (BCA announcement 2026-06-11; confidential S-4 draft submission announced 2026-08-13).
- Markets:
- Data centers / AI infrastructure; industrial engine starting; intelligent transportation
- Products:
- BC Series UPS Battery Cabinets (incl. BC 2 AI); NiZn Retrofit Kit; Monobloc Battery; Cylindrical Cells; nickel-zinc energy storage solution for AI dynamic loads
- Customers:
- Not named on site; PR cites 'diversified, blue-chip, and hyperscaler customers'
None; site and deal materials align.
Source: https://zincfive.com/ · captured Aug 15, 2026 · marketing claims are reported as claims, never merged into the filed figures above.
The deal it’s entering
ZincFive is merging with Spark I Acquisition Corp (SPKL), a $100M SPAC currently marked Deal announced and trading at $11.60 against $10.05 in trust per share.
| Headline equity value | $600M |
| PIPE | ≈ $107M · unsourced12.0% Series A Cumulative Convertible Preferred @ stated value $12.00 + matching warrants (concurrent with Closing); $6.5M via Bridge Note conversion |
| Minimum cash to close | $100M |
Structure per SEC accession(s) 0001104659-26-072635. How to read these numbers: headline vs effective valuation · what a definitive agreement commits
What exactly is being valued, and at what
Was this deal done at an expensive or a cheap valuation?
SpacBrain’s read on the price
Priced above its listed peers
The deal values ZincFive, Inc. at $600M, or 9× the FY2025A (per joint deal press release; 'approximately $66.9 million', ~2x 2024) actual revenue it actually reported. That is 2× what the market pays for its closest listed peers (median 4.46×) — an expensive price. It is priced above 63% of them.
Announced equity value (net debt unknown).
FY2025A (per joint deal press release; 'approximately $66.9 million', ~2x 2024) — a reported actual.
9× FY2025A (per joint deal press release; 'approximately $66.9 million', ~2x 2024) actual revenue. Put another way: $1 of its annual sales is being bought for $9.00.
$1 of their sales costs $4.46 on the open market. Median of 8 listed companies we judged a true comparable, which individually run from 0.76× to 28.17×. Their share prices are from 15 August 2026, not today.
What qualifies this number
- The target's cash and debt are not in the filings we have, so this is an equity value used as a stand-in for enterprise value.
- ELPW, AQMS, FLUX, SDST, ULBI, ABAT, BESS, DFLI have no revenue to divide by, so they are shown but left out of the peer median.
The listed companies it is measured against
| Ticker | Company | Mkt cap | EV / revenue | EV / EBITDA | Why it’s comparable |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VRT | Vertiv Holdings, LLC | $113.1B | 9.9x | 42.3x | Vertiv is the flagship data-center power-infrastructure (UPS/thermal) franchise - the channel ZincFive's cabinets sell into and the sector multiple ceiling.more ▾less ▴ |
| SES | SES AI Corporation | $227M | 3.0x | — | Operational comp: Batteries & Uninterruptable Power Supplies; small-cap ($657m); shares battery, ion, lithium, density, safety, cells with the target's own description; forward EV/Sales 1.1x.more ▾less ▴ |
| ENS | EnerSys | $7.3B | 2.1x | 12.2x | EnerSys - the incumbent industrial/UPS battery maker (lead-acid and lithium) that NiZn directly displaces; the profitability and multiple reality-check.more ▾less ▴ |
| ELPW | eLong Power Holding Ltd | $8M | — | — | Operational comp: Batteries & Uninterruptable Power Supplies; micro-cap ($8m); shares lithium, battery, ion, power, cells, systems with the target's own description; no forward EV/Sales published — counted as a peer, excluded from the median.more ▾less ▴ |
| EOSE | Eos Energy Enterprises, Inc. | $1.5B | 11.7x | — | Eos Energy - the listed zinc-chemistry battery de-SPAC; the closest precedent for how public markets treat novel zinc battery chemistries. |
| MVST | Microvast Holdings, Inc. | $329M | 1.1x | 10.0x | Operational comp: Batteries & Uninterruptable Power Supplies; small-cap ($919m); shares nickel, battery, lithium, ion, systems, commercial with the target's own description; forward EV/Sales 0.9x.more ▾less ▴ |
| FLNC | Fluence Energy, Inc. | $3.0B | 0.8x | — | Fluence Energy - utility-scale battery-storage systems integrator; comps the energy-storage-solution expansion ZincFive just launched. |
| AQMS | Aqua Metals Inc | $14M | — | — | Operational comp: Nonferrous Metal Processing; micro-cap ($14m); shares battery, nickel, lithium, ion, acid, lead with the target's own description; no forward EV/Sales published — counted as a peer, excluded from the median.more ▾less ▴ |
| POWL | Powell Industries, Inc. | $7.8B | 5.9x | 28.8x | Powell Industries - electrical infrastructure hardware riding the same data-center capex cycle with real earnings; a grounded industrial comp. |
| FLUX | Flux Power Holdings Inc | $25M | — | — | Operational comp: Batteries & Uninterruptable Power Supplies; micro-cap ($25m); shares battery, ion, lithium, acid, power, lead with the target's own description; forward EV/Sales 0.5x.more ▾less ▴ |
| ENVX | Enovix Corporation | $972M | 28.2x | — | Operational comp: Batteries & Uninterruptable Power Supplies; small-cap ($1.6bn); shares battery, ion, lithium, density, cells, industrial with the target's own description; forward EV/Sales 19.6x.more ▾less ▴ |
| SDST | Stardust Power Inc | $30M | — | — | Operational comp: Specialty Mining & Metals (NEC); micro-cap ($30m); shares battery, lithium, power, from, which, including with the target's own description; no forward EV/Sales published — counted as a peer, excluded from the median.more ▾less ▴ |
| ULBI | Ultralife Corp | $95M | — | — | Operational comp: Batteries & Uninterruptable Power Supplies; micro-cap ($95m); shares cylindrical, battery, lithium, power, systems, group with the target's own description; no forward EV/Sales published — counted as a peer, excluded from the median.more ▾less ▴ |
| ABAT | American Battery Technology Company | $158M | — | — | Operational comp: Specialty Mining & Metals (NEC); micro-cap ($158m); shares battery, lithium, ion, value, from, for with the target's own description; forward EV/Sales 14.6x.more ▾less ▴ |
| BESS | Bimergen Energy Corp | $41M | — | — | Operational comp: Batteries & Uninterruptable Power Supplies; micro-cap ($41m); shares battery, power, ion, lithium, systems, corp with the target's own description; forward EV/Sales 1.0x.more ▾less ▴ |
| DFLI | Dragonfly Energy Holdings Corp | $37M | — | — | Operational comp: Batteries & Uninterruptable Power Supplies; micro-cap ($37m); shares battery, lithium, cells, corp, systems, industrial with the target's own description; forward EV/Sales 0.9x.more ▾less ▴ |
Which companies belong on this list is our judgement, and the sentence beside each one is the whole of our reasoning — disagree with it and the verdict above changes. Rows marked context only are shown because they are informative, but they are deliberately left out of the median. The multiples come from listed-company data priced Aug 15, 2026; a private target’s deal multiple is not audited the way theirs are.
Common questions
Is ZincFive going public?
ZincFive has a signed merger with the SPAC Spark I Acquisition Corp (SPKL), announced Jun 11, 2026. Deal status: Definitive (DA signed).
What is ZincFive's SPAC deal valuation?
The announced headline equity value is $600M.
Was ZincFive bought at an expensive or a cheap valuation?
The deal values ZincFive, Inc. at $600M, or 9× the FY2025A (per joint deal press release; 'approximately $66.9 million', ~2x 2024) actual revenue it actually reported. That is 2× what the market pays for its closest listed peers (median 4.46×) — an expensive price. It is priced above 63% of them.
Does ZincFive have revenue?
The filings report a revenue figure of $66.9M (FY2025A (per joint deal press release; 'approximately $66.9 million', ~2x 2024)).
Educational content, not investment advice.
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