NEO Battery Materials Ltd revealed that it has submitted an application seeking a construction permit for a silicon anode commercial plant in the Oseong Foreign Investment Zone, in South Korea.
The Vancouver-based company focused on electric vehicle (EV) lithium-ion battery materials said that after completing the architectural design, its local subsidiary NBM Korea has submitted the construction permit application for the proposed plant to Pyeongtaek City, in the Gyeonggi province.
NEO said that NBM Korea will begin initial construction work and contractor bids upon permit approval, which is expected within a month.
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“With a processing period of one month, the construction permit is expected to be obtained at the end of December 2022,” said the company.
On approval, the initial construction process from site clearance to basic civil engineering work will be carried out sequentially, noted the company. An invitation for bid process will occur to select a contractor for the factory building and once the bidding is completed, NEO and the selected contractor will determine the commencement of construction, the company said.
In a statement, NEO Battery CEO Spencer Huh said: “Amidst the turbulent global economic and financial environment, we are greatly thankful for the current construction and commercialization progress made by the company, management, and engineering team.”
“Along with optimization and construction efforts, our team is investing our best efforts and prioritizing our silicon anode go-to-market strategy. Most recently, we have also fortified our R&D Scale-Up Centre to commit to rapid response for feedback and optimization testing capacity enhancements,” he added.
NEO has a focus on producing silicon anode materials through its proprietary single-step nanocoating process, which provides improvements in capacity and efficiency over lithium-ion batteries using graphite in their anode materials. The company intends to become a silicon anode active materials supplier to the electric vehicle industry.
“Once again, NEO is excited to announce the next steps to commercialization, and we are confident to achieve our next milestones,” said Huh.
Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com
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