Australia’s place on the global battery map was given another boost this week after a co-funding grant was awarded to the country’s first utility-scale lithium-ion manufacturer Energy Renaissance.
The AUS$246,625 ($175,000) co-funded grant includes matched financial contributions from the industry-led, not-for-project organisation Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre (AMGC) and Energy Renaissance.
Founded in 2015, Energy Renaissance plans to open a 1.3GWh facility dubbed Renaissance One to manufacture batteries for Australia and export to Southeast Asia.
The location of the facility is due to be announced in the second half of this year.
Energy Renaissance will use the project funding to accelerate research and development, and design with research collaborator CSIRO and partners Cadenza Innovation and Wuxi LEAD.
The grant will also be used to design an automated production line using robotics and automated quality control systems to increase efficiencies across Energy Renaissance’s manufacturing facility.
When Energy Renaissance’s manufacturing facility operates at full capacity, it is expected that 60% of its batteries will be exported with an expected contribution of AUS$3 billion ($2.1 billion) per annum to Australia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
AMGC’s managing director, Dr Jens Goennemann said: “Australia has an opportunity to lead the world when it comes to energy transition while adding value to our abundant natural resources. It was this ability we identified some time ago with Energy Renaissance and its manufacturing aspirations.
“Energy Renaissance’s hot-climate battery technology has numerous applications across multiple sectors including energy, defence, commercial and industrial – both domestically and abroad. They are an example of how Australia’s advanced manufacturing industry is developing world-leading solutions.”
There are plans in process to build an 18 GWh lithium-ion battery factory in Townsville, northern Queensland, by Imperium3 consortium (iM3TSV), which consists of Magnis Energy, C4V LLC New York and Boston Energy and Innovation.
Last October, a project feasibility study for the AUS$2.5 billion project was submitted to the Queensland Government.
