September 17, 2024

|

Sunila

Finland

CarbonScape, a pioneer in sustainable battery materials announces a significant leap forward in its journey towards commercialisation by selecting the Sunila site in Finland as the location for its biographite demonstration plant. This strategic decision marks an important step for CarbonScape in establishing a European battery supply chain independent of traditional graphite sources, and the data generated by the plant will also support expansion globally.

The Sunila site, located in Kotka in southern Finland, is owned by Stora Enso, a global leader in renewable materials and a co-owner of CarbonScape. In 2023 Stora Enso closed its pulp production and lignin extraction operations at Sunila and will now lease part of the site area to CarbonScape.

CarbonScape is currently advancing its engineering study for the demonstration plant, as well as its first commercial plant. The aim is to start construction of the demonstration plant next year and begin sample production in 2026.

Revolutionising the Battery Industry 

CarbonScape, a New Zealand-based bioeconomy company, has developed a low cost and carbon-negative biographite made from wood biomass. This revolutionary material is engineered to replace mined or fossil-based synthetic graphite in lithium-ion batteries, addressing critical supply chain and sustainability challenges in the rapidly growing electric vehicle and energy storage sectors.

Ivan Williams, CEO of CarbonScape, commented: "Our partnership with Stora Enso and the decision to locate our demonstration plant in Sunila underscore the global potential of our technology. By producing biographite from sustainable wood sources, we're not just creating a new supply chain – we're redefining what's possible in battery technology."

A Strategic Partnership for a Sustainable Future 

The selection of Stora Enso's Sunila site comes a year after the forest industry leader became a shareholder in CarbonScape. This collaboration combines CarbonScape's cutting-edge technology with Stora Enso's expertise in bio-based innovations from renewable materials.

Juuso Konttinen, Senior Vice President of Biomaterials Growth Businesses at Stora Enso, stated: Hosting CarbonScape's demonstration plant at our Sunila site aligns perfectly with our shared vision for advancing sustainable battery technologies and the shift to renewable materials. This partnership enables us to explore synergies between our plants, driving innovation and strengthening Stora Enso's leadership in sustainable solutions.”

From Pilot to Commercial Scale 

Since 2018, CarbonScape has been optimising its biographite production process at its pilot plant in New Zealand. The new demonstration plant in Sunila represents a significant scaling up of this technology, paving the way for full commercialisation.

The demonstration plant will have three main purposes:

• Produce larger biographite samples for OEMs and battery cell makers and for product qualification purposes
• Train operators and engineers in a large industrial setting
• Getting closer to one of the end markets for CarbonScape: Europe

Global Impact and Market Potential 

With graphite comprising up to 42% of the volume of a lithium-ion battery, the development of a sustainable, locally produced alternative is of critical importance. By 2030, over 90% of the world's battery-grade graphite will come from China, creating potential supply chain vulnerabilities for the growing electric vehicle and renewable energy storage industries.

CarbonScape's biographite offers a price competitive solution that offer both performance and environmental superiority, while enhancing energy security – enabling localised production of this essential material. This aligns with recent policy initiatives such as the European Critical Raw Materials Act and similar measures in North America aimed at securing strategic battery materials.

ENDS 

About CarbonScape Limited

CarbonScape is a bioeconomy company based in New Zealand and currently expanding in Europe and North America. By decarbonizing and derisking the graphite supply chain, the pioneering deep-tech business plays a crucial role in accelerating the global transition to clean energy and electric mobility. CarbonScape has developed of a low cost, high-performance graphite material, that can be sustainably manufactured locally, anywhere in the world. Using a cheap by-product of the forestry industry – woodchips, containing carbon – as feedstock, the company uses its patent protect process to convert this into high quality biographite. CarbonScape has been running a pilot plant in New Zealand since 2018 and are currently designing and financing a much larger optimisation plant in Europe. The business has already secured investment from one of the world’s largest battery player’s, ATL, and one of the largest forestry corporations, Stora Enso. CarbonScape’s goal is to build multiple industrial plants in Europe and North America. For further information about CarbonScape, please visit www.carbonscape.com 

About Stora Enso 

Part of the global bioeconomy, Stora Enso is a leading provider of renewable products in packaging, biomaterials and wooden construction, and one of the largest private forest owners in the world. We create value with our low-carbon and recyclable fiber-based products, through which we support our customers in meeting the demand for renewable sustainable products. Stora Enso has approximately 20,000 employees and our sales in 2023 were EUR 9.4 billion. Stora Enso shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Oy (STEAV, STERV) and Nasdaq Stockholm AB (STE A, STE R). In addition, the shares are traded in OTC Markets (OTCQX) in the USA as ADRs and ordinary shares (SEOAY, SEOFF, SEOJF). For more information about Stora Enso, please visit: www.storaenso.com