Australian-owned ternary cathode materials producer Next-Gen Energy Technology and Germany-headquartered Siemens Australia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to accelerate Next-Gen’s efforts to establish the first Lithium Nickel Carbon Aluminium (NCA) cathode materials manufacturing plant outside of China.
Li (NCA) cathode materials use critical minerals that are currently mined in multiple states of Australia but sent offshore for refining and processing in China.
Next-Gen Chief Executive Officer Andrew Cooper said the Li (NCA) solution is a world first, transformative and nation building.
“We see that onshoring the battery supply chain in Australia will reduce the carbon footprint in the industry dramatically and we have a very ambitious target, as far as the timelines are concerned, to set up our factory and to have that fully commissioned by the end of 2025. We recognise we can’t do that on our own,” Cooper said.
Describing the project as a centrepiece for the battery value chain, Cooper said it has already attracted both upstream and downstream global investment and will help strengthen Australia’s sovereign manufacturing capabilities.
Next-Gen will utilise Siemen’s Digital Twin software and draw on their core expertise in digitalisation, automation, and electrification to scale up onshore production of battery manufacturing technology to increase capability.
Siemens Australia and New Zealand Digital Industries Head Darryl Kaufmann said technology and digitalisation are the key to increasing manufacturing complexity and sovereign capability whilst accelerating sustainability in Australia.
“Being the largest automation and industrial software company in the world, we’re making our technology more accessible than ever so that companies like Next-Gen can bring their innovations to life through powerful tools such as Digital Twin,” Kaufmann said.
“We’re proud to extend our support to organisations such as Next-Gen who are pushing the boundaries of local innovation, manufacturing and supply chain.”
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