Ilika plc (LON:IKA), a pioneer in solid-state battery technology, has announced it is collaborating with Comau, part of the Fiat Group, and a world leader in the industrial automation field, to scale up Ilika’s existing Goliath pre pilot line and deliver a plant design for a Goliath manufacturing line at a mega-scale facility.
The design study is being supported by the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) and Ilika will receive a £235,000 grant towards its related costs over the 12-month project.
The Project, which is led by Ilika, has two objectives, firstly to design the scale up of Ilika’s existing Goliath pre pilot line to increase production of solid-state cells from 1kWh per week to 10kWh per week. Secondly, Comau will undertake a full study of Ilika’s processes and deliver a plant design for a megawatt scale solid-state manufacturing line for ultimate installation at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC).
These manufacturing scale up activities are running in parallel with Ilika’s Goliath solid-state technology developments to ensure Ilika can deliver its batteries to the global marketplace cost effectively and within the quickest time frame.
Automotive Transformation Director at the APC, Julian Hetherington said: “As part of the second round of feasibility study funding by the Automotive Transformation Fund, we are pleased to award Ilika and Comau a grant of £495,700. This funding is a great start in supporting companies like Ilika as they advance their future product development and manufacturing processes for a future net-zero vehicle supply chain.”
Graeme Purdy, Ilika CEO, stated: “This project is an important step in the scale up of our Goliath technology and represents an exciting opportunity to work with Comau, one of the world’s leading designers of innovative engineering solutions. We are a strong team ideally placed to deliver a strong manufacturing capability for Goliath solid-state batteries.”
