WA is well placed to develop battery precursor production capability central to downstream processing of battery minerals, a critical gap in the Australian supply chain. This will bring significant social, environmental and economic benefits to WA and the nation, placing Australia as an exporter of value-added products, rather than just raw materials.
The FBICRCs second scene setting report, ‘Li-ion Battery Cathode Manufacturing in Australia, was funded by the Minerals Research Institute of WA and undertaken by QUT, with support from Hatch Engineering and Curtin University.
To view the report, visit https://fbicrc.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Li-ion-Battery-Cathode-Manufacturing-in-Aust-1.pdf
In a media statement today, Mines and Petroleum Minister Bill Johnston said, “This will help diversify the Western Australian economy, create jobs and place Australia at the forefront of the global battery revolution.
“The report demonstrates that Western Australia has the potential to become a major processing, manufacturing and trading hub for battery materials.
“The McGowan Government’s Future Battery Industry Strategy continues to WA’s battery chain capability and invest in research to lead the nation’s growth in the uptake of opportunities across the whole global battery value chain.”
The findings provide a firm foundation and direction for the next phase of the CRC’s development work, the establishment of a cathode precursor pilot plant in WA. The FBICRC has already committed $300,000 for the scoping phase of this Pilot Plant project, for verification of technical and processing capability. The final cost of the project will be scoped in this stage but based on industry support to date, it is expected to involve more than $10M cash and in kind over four years.