Altech Batteries (ASX: ATC) has received binding conditional approval for up to $80.4 million in funding from the German federal government for the construction of its CERENERGY sodium-chloride solid-state battery manufacturing facility in Saxony.
The approval falls under the nation’s STARK economic development program and covers approximately 30% of the project’s capital expenditure.
Funding is conditional on Altech achieving full project financial close by end June 2026 as well as parliamentary approval of the funds under Germany’s federal budget.
Significant milestone
Altech’s newly-appointed managing director Daniel Raihani said the funding represented a significant milestone for the planned 120 megawatt-hours battery factory.
“Securing conditional approval reflects the strategic importance of establishing an advanced, non-lithium energy-storage manufacturing capability in Europe and recognizes our technical progress achieved to date in collaboration with Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (Fraunhofer IKTS),” he said.
“Importantly, this grant materially de-risks the project’s capital structure by covering approximately 30% of eligible investment costs and provides a strong foundation as we move toward full project financing and construction.”
He said the company was focused on advancing CERENERGY technology toward commercial deployment to support long-duration, safe and sustainable stationary energy storage solutions for the European market.
Refreshed board
Mr Raihani is part of a refreshed executive line-up for Altech, focused on accelerating commercialisation pathways for the CERENERGY and silumina anodes projects in collaboration with established battery manufacturers, industrial technology groups, chemical producers, or government-supported programs.
The new board of directors aims to secure one or more qualified strategic partners who can contribute capital, technical resources, and market access to advance the projects towards commercial reality.
UPS technology
Altech’s board also plans to reassess the strategic rationale and economic merit of a recent distribution arrangement for sodium-nickel-chloride UPS (uninterruptible power supply) batteries, produced by global energy solutions company AMPower.
The company completed the final engineering design for the UPS system in November and is preparing for testing and real-world deployment to validate its electrical performance, safety features, communication protocols and mechanical integration.
