Powering Australia signs deal to access facilities at UKBIC

Inspecting a jelly roll in the cylindrical cell line at UKBIC

Australian businesses now have the opportunity to access world-leading battery manufacturing scale-up facilities, following the sigining of an agreement earlier this month between the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC) and Powering Australia.

UKBIC is a £130 million national battery manufacturing scale-up facility, based in Coventry, that was established by the UK Government through the Faraday Battery Challenge to help companies bridge the gap between battery technology showing promise at laboratory scale and move them towards successful mass production.

This new agreement is intended to strengthen collaboration in battery research, technology and innovation between Australia and the UK and aligns with the ‘Statement of Intent’ signed by the Albanese Government in April 2023. The statement is intended to promote collaboration on critical minerals, strengthen international supply chains, meet ‘net zero’ objectives, remove barriers to adoption of new technology and help create the jobs and the workforce of the future.

Powering Australia’s CEO Shannon O’Rourke said reaching the agreement with UKBIC is a key milestone for the organisation which was established around five months ago to help operationalise an intergovernmental agreement with tangible action and accelerate the development of Australia’s battery industry in partnership with other nations.

Major win
He said: “We are delighted to have reached this agreement with the UKBIC team, less than six months into our formation as Powering Australia which is very much aligned to the Statement of Intent. Our organisation was established to help Australian businesses succeed in clean-tech manufacturing and being able to access world-scale common user facilities like the UKBIC is major win.”

UKBIC’s facility covers 20,000m² and has extensive equipment covering battery production from mixing and coating, to calendering, slitting cylindrical and pouch cell assembly, and formation, ageing, testing, as well as module and pack assembly.

UKBIC managing director Sean Gilgunn said: “This is a great first step between the two organisations to encourage cooperation between the UK and Australia in battery technology. We are looking forward to helping Powering Australia with its vision, and, in the future, to welcoming Australian companies
that want to use our ‘state of the art’ facilities.”

The two organisations will now work together on strategic projects that offer mutual benefit and will engage in the exchange of skills and expertise to help both nations develop their respective battery industries further.