Li-S Energy has celebrated the official opening of its 2MWh Battery Cell Production Facility in Geelong, Victoria, attended by Federal Minister for Industry and Science the Hon. Ed Husic MP and Federal MP for Corangamite the Hon. Libby Coker.
During the launch, Minister Husic announced Li-S Energy had been awarded an Industry Growth Program (IGP) Commercialisation and Growth Grant of $1.7 million to develop Australia’s first lithium foil production facility.
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Li-S Energy is an Australian company, commercialising unique Australian IP from Deakin University for lithium sulfur and lithium metal batteries, which are far lighter than the comparable lithium-ion batteries. The batteries offer key performance advantages where weight is critical, such as in drones, electric aviation and defence applications.
The new state-of-the-art production facility is the largest of its kind in Australia, installed inside Australia’s largest battery dry room. Built at a cost of over $10 million, the facility spans the entire production process from creating and coating cathode powders to final cell fabrication and testing.
With the support of the IGP Grant announced by Minister Husic, Li-S Energy plans to extend beyond its cell manufacturing capability to produce high-quality lithium foils and laminates from lithium metal ingots.
Lithium metal foil is used as the anode for both lithium sulfur and lithium metal batteries, but current imported supply has limited quality and is not optimised for Li-S cells. This will be a new sovereign manufacturing capability for Australia, reducing supply chain risk and increasing the value of Australia’s advanced battery material exports.
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Li-S Energy CEO Dr Lee Finniear said, “Australia currently produces 52% of the world’s lithium ore, yet much of this is exported without adding additional value.
“With global demand for lithium metal foil forecast to reach US$51 billion by 2032, Australia has a unique opportunity to capitalise on this emerging market to produce lithium foils here, adding value here, before exporting this high-value product to global markets.”
