Australian energy startup Sicona Battery Technologies (Sicona) announced on Wednesday that it has raised AUD 22 million ($15 million) in Series A funding. This money will be used to advance the company’s development goals in both Australia and the United States.
According to a statement from Sicona, the investment was led by the Australian venture capital firm Artesian, Himadri Speciality Chemical Ltd. of India, and Electrification & Decarbonization AIE LP, a vehicle run by Waratah Capital.
In addition to Club Investible, Investible Climate Tech Fund LP, Riverstone Ventures, Chaos Ventures, and Club Investible took part in the investment round.
According to Sicona, the money raised in this round would allow for considerable growth potential in the US between 2023 and 2024, where demand for anode materials is anticipated to approach 1,200GWh by 2030.
Sicona Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder Christiaan Jordaan stated that the company’s flagship product, a unique silicon metal based silicon-composite battery anode technology, allows for an improvement in energy density of existing Li-ion batteries of more than 50%.
He claimed that by using silicon metal, Sicona could locally and in significant markets provide inexpensive silicon anode materials at huge vehicle scale.
He added that by include one of the top specialty chemical firms in the world as a strategic investor in the company’s Series A round, the firm is able to move on with its goal of becoming a significant manufacturer of silicon composite anode materials that are both affordable and efficient.
He claims that Himadri has a long history of producing materials at a large scale, and their knowledge and contributions will be a significant advantage to us in the upcoming stages of our growth goals.
“Our silicon metal-based technology decouples us from the major bottlenecks and cost implications of silane gas-based technologies and provides our customers with the confidence that we can deliver a silicon-carbon anode material at a capital intensity and $/kg price which is feasible for mass-automotive market adoption,” he continued.
Additionally, he stated that the company’s goal is to provide enabling technologies that consistently push the boundaries of battery and battery material performance and innovation.
He claimed that it strives to produce the greatest materials available in a scalable, economical manner to support a sustainable future.
Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are used in electric vehicles and the storage of renewable energy, and Sicona is a company that creates low-cost, scalable next-generation battery materials technology.
The company’s current generation silicon-composite anode technology provides a remarkable 50 percent to 100 percent higher capacity than traditional graphite anodes, and its anode materials can give more than 50 percent higher cell energy density than present Li-ion batteries.
The business, which has its headquarters and pilot plant in Wollongong, a suburb south of Sydney, is moving on with engineering studies, site selection, and customer qualification for a 20ktpa (about 200 GWh) silicon-carbon production plant, commencing with a 5kpta (about 50 GWh) unit in phase 1.
In order to provide customers in the US market with materials that are consistent with the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a commercial scale plant will be constructed in the south-eastern US.
“We are thrilled to make this investment in Sicona. Anurag Choudhary, chairman and managing director of Himadri Speciality Chemical, stated Sicona’s innovative research and highly efficient, scalable manufacturing method for silicon anodes fully fit our strategic goals.
He claimed that Sicona’s personnel, technology, and capacity to continually innovate in the quickly changing battery technology field are all incredibly confident assets for the company.
