Public Funding for Agm Batteries Limited

Battery technology is becoming increasingly important for the UK and global economy. This project aims to develop a technology to improve the safety and efficiency of lithium cells when used in automotive applications. The benefits of the project will be felt across the UK supply chain right through to consumer level where they will benefit from more reliable and safer vehicles.

"The Synergy project is focused on developing a step change in performance and environmental friendliness of lithium ion batteries to meet the needs of electric vehicles. It brings together the raw material, formulation, electrochemical knowledge and cell manufacture capabilities of Synthomer Plc (including Synthomer's polymer development team in Harlow and inorganic material team at William Blythe in Accrington) the Centre for Process Innovation and AGM Batteries Ltd. The project will lead to manufacturing and performance improvements in the anode system. It will also focus on methods to improve the safety and environmental profile of cathode systems. The combined improvements are expected to reduce the costs of cell manufacture and help to realise the range and power output needed for the next generation of electric vehicles. The project is well suited to capture and exploit the value of electrode materials and lithium ion cell manufacture by establishing a robust UK supply chain."

"The Government's Faraday Battery Challenge program is supporting an exciting research project to bring solid-state batteries much closer to market in future electric vehicles. The main advantage of solid state batteries (SSBs) lies in their increased safety, power performance, enhanced cycle life and increased energy density as compared to current Lithium-ion cells. This should translate into electric vehicles which can travel much further between charges, simpler battery pack designs and faster re-charging when it is necessary. This would ease any remaining customer worries about long charging delays or running out of power on long trips and help more people make the switch to electric motoring. However, solid state battery technology is still in its infancy and no one has yet worked out how to deploy the science on an industrial scale and at reasonable cost. Project Granite will explore the cost-effective routes for scaling up the solid-state technology developed by Ilika, a pioneering leader in this technology, with the support of AGM Batteries, which has industrial experience in manufacturing Lithium-ion cells. The project is led by Jaguar Land Rover, which will develop the new battery pack designs to fit within their future electric vehicles. Warwick Manufacturing Group will supply academic excellence in abuse modelling and cell performance evaluation. The consortium's expertise, backed by Government financial support, will allow Britain's best talent to be brought to bear, so that the UK can take the lead in this transformative technology."

Awaiting Public Project Summary

"To establish an effective, repeatable and scalable carbon-coating process for next-gen silicon anodes materials that will improve the current performance of lithium-Ion batteries, and hence accelerate the adoption of Nexeon anode materials by cell manufacturers and at major OEMs, via an 18 month 3.3m project utilizing PSI’s scaled process know-how, AGM’s cell fabrication expertise and Oxford University’s analytical capabilities" Battery cells typically represent \>60% of the cost of an EV battery pack and almost 100% are currently imported to the UK. Security of supply is a major concern for UK pack builders and vehicle OEMs. AGM is already working with partners to grow the UK supply chain for cell materials and components, alongside its own plans for significant upscaling of its UK cell manufacturing capability. The need for UK based core cell material manufacturers is partly addressed through this project -- secure supply of IP rich, cell performance enhancing materials means that the cells developed in the UK can offer leading edge performance and provide the consortium members the confidence to scale beyond niche and into mass market application. Oxford University's Department of Materials will provide state-of-the-art material characterisation to support the project."

The UK Niche Vehicle Battery Cell Supply Chain project brings together niche vehicle manufacturers and Tier1 developers and suppliers with the UKs only Li-ion cell manufacturer, a UK materials manufacturer, an automotive supply chain specialist and three prominent Research and Technology Organisations. It addresses a problem that affects many developers and manufacturers of specialist products that rely on batteries. Although Li-ion technology was invented in the UK, it was the Japanese technology giant Sony that commercialised and brought the first Li-ion products to market. The UK is very strong on battery technology research. This project aims to bridge the gap between research and product and to bring battery cell manufacture to the UK. We're doing this in a very focused way, where we can support one of the UKs strong existing manufacturing sectors, niche vehicles, helping it to thrive in the new world of vehicle electrification. The volume of cells required by this industry are manageable by global production standards and play to the UKs strengths of high performance, quality and customisation. This is the first step to creating a significant UK industry.

Sigma Lithium proposes a proprietary patented method of forming porous 3D metallic lithium electrodes for applications in lithium-based batteries. This metallic lithium electrode technology will enable the creation of a new generation of batteries, with higher energy density, longer cycle counts, and improved efficiency in high-power applications. Our technology will bring about a step change in the performance of electric vehicles.

The UK Automotive Battery Supply Chain project will create the ability to deliver next generation battery packs for high performance low carbon vehicles. The project recognises the needs of the growing UK automotive industry and capitalises on world leading UK innovations in the area of battery technology. The collaborative project combines UK innovations and knowledge from five partners; AGM Batteries (a battery cell manufacturer), Dukosi (a leader is smart battery management technology), Johnson Matthey Battery Systems (a battery pack manufacture), Warwick Manufacturing Group (an academic group with specialist battery knowledge and facilities) and Cosworth (a world leading high performance powertrain developer).

A consortium of three businesses, Faradion Ltd. , AGM Batteries Ltd. and Renault together with Warwick University have come together to demonstrate that battery packs based on sodium-ion technology can be manufactured successfully on a commercial scale. The technology has been developed in the laboratory by Faradion Ltd who will be joing forces with Warwick University and AGM Batteries Ltd to transfer the technology to AGM`s battery manufacturing plant. Renault contributes to the setting of priorities for the programme by providing information on market requirements.