Altech Chemicals (ASX:ATC) progresses construction of German pilot plant

• Altech Chemicals (ATC) says the construction of its pilot plant in Germany is tracking well and as planned
• The company is building a pilot plant to support the development of its Silumina Anodes product, aimed at improving the capacity of graphite-only battery anodes
• The product will later be commercialised for the European electric vehicle sector
• Altech says a definitive feasibility study, which is being conducted by Leadec Automation and Engineering, is progressing alongside the pilot plant construction
• ATC shares are up 1.06 per cent to trade at 9.5 cents at 3:03 pm AEDT

Altech Chemicals (ATC) on Tuesday reported the construction of its pilot plant in Germany was tracking well and as planned.

The company said the commissioning of the front end of the plant, known as the wet circuit, was currently underway.

This means the staple infrastructure — such as the power supply, building modifications, lab, and wet circuit — is almost complete.

Altech’s plant is located in an existing building at the Schwarze Pumpe Industrial Park site in Saxony, Germany. The 10,000-tonne-per-annum plant will support the development of the company’s Silumina Anodes product, which will be provided to selected users for product testing.

Silumina Anodes is the name Altech gave to its alumina-coated lithium-ion battery anode material. The Silumina Anodes product is designed to be used to increase the life and capacity of a graphite-only battery anode.

Ultimately, the product will be commercially available for the European electric vehicle market.

The materials stock is now undertaking fabrication of the back end of the plant, including the coating equipment, dryer and calciner. The company expects the final items will be installed and commissioned by the September 2023 quarter.

In addition, Altech Chemicals said a definitive feasibility study, being conducted by Leadec Automation and Engineering, was progressing well.

The company also recently appointed ARIKON Infrastruktur to manage the approval process and site infrastructure requirements. It will work with relevant regulatory bodies to obtain the necessary approvals for the plant.

ATC shares were up 1.06 per cent to trade at 9.5 cents at 3:03 pm AEDT.