WOODINVILLE, Wash. and DONGTAN, South Korea, Dec. 6, 2023 — Group14 Technologies today announced the company has secured further IP protection across its technology, products, and manufacturing processes in South Korea. The achievements support growing demand from customers ranging from original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to battery makers that supply batteries globally to the automotive EV and consumer electronics industries.
“Asia is a critical market for Group14, one where we continue to see high demand for advanced silicon battery materials from our consumer electronics and automotive customers,” said Rick Luebbe, CEO of Group14. “As we accelerate manufacturing at a global scale, the strengthening of our patent portfolio across regional markets supports our global strategy to supply silicon battery materials worldwide.”
Group14’s joint venture with SK Inc., established in 2021 as SK materials Group14 Co., Ltd., has completed the construction of a Battery Active Materials (BAM) factory in Sangju, South Korea, to manufacture Group14’s SCC55™ technology. Currently in the commissioning phase, the initial module from the joint venture’s BAM factory will have a manufacturing capacity of 2,000 tons of SCC55™, which is equivalent to enabling 10 GW of silicon battery capacity annually. Commercial delivery from the joint venture, which expects to begin shipping material in the coming months, enables Group14 to meet the industry’s dual-sourcing requirement and to supply SCC55™ to the global automotive industry from factories in North America and Asia.
A testament to Group14’s approach to product and process innovation, the recent patents, entitled “Manufacturing of Silicon-Carbon Composite Materials,” and “Composites of Porous Nano-Featured Silicon Materials and Carbon Materials,” reinforce the company’s ability to protect its inventions. Allowed by the Korean Intellectual Property Office for the company’s innovative silicon battery product and novel manufacturing processes to create its proprietary silicon anode material, the patents are the latest additions to a broad portfolio secured worldwide.
“Securing our IP portfolio lays the foundation for scaling our manufacturing capacity worldwide and offering critical multi-sourcing capabilities to our customers in the North American, European, and Asian markets,” said Group14 CTO Rick Costantino. “As we complete the commissioning phase with SK Inc. at the joint venture factory, we are beginning to see tremendous appetite from our customers, who have begun reserving shipments of SCC55™ for their devices and vehicles.”
