Blackstone Technology: Funding for Battery Development in Saxony

The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) has issued the first funding notice for a large-scale project as part of the research funding measure for the battery ecosystem. The notice includes a grant of a total of 24.1 million euros to a consortium around the Saxon battery manufacturer Blackstone Technology GmbH, the ministry announced.

“Research is the foundation for the development of new technologies for the energy transition. With the funding measure for the battery ecosystem, we are ensuring that the next generation of sustainable batteries is developed towards series maturity,” explained Michael Kellner, the Parliamentary State Secretary of the BMWK.

The project of Blackstone Technology deals with 3D-printed batteries based on sodium, which largely dispense with imported raw materials. Although there are still several steps to go before they can be used in vehicles, this technology already has the potential to become an important building block for even more sustainable mobility Made in Germany, believes Kellner. 

Solid-State Batteries: From the Lab to Reality

The Saxon company will, within the next three years, further develop the previously validated laboratory results of the 3D-printed solid-state batteries towards series maturity, together with a German industrial and research consortium. A total of 32 million euros will be invested in a pilot plant at the production site in Döbeln as well as in extensive research and development work. Furthermore, the upscaling of solid-state electrolytes based on sodium to the ton scale will be prepared so that Blackstone can start producing them from 2025 onwards.

As part of the BMWK funding measure with the long title “Research in the Focused Funding of Battery Cell Manufacturing,” published in March 2021, which accompanies the two battery IPCEIs, a total of nearly 40 research consortia with around 200 sub-projects are on the starting blocks, which will be approved by the BMWK in the coming months. The focal points of the funding measure are the complex topics of battery sustainability and recycling, digitized battery production, testing, certification, and quality assurance of batteries, as well as the application of new battery cell techniques, the ministry further outlined. The mentioned projects are supported with a total of over 150 million euros, with the belief that this will significantly contribute to “creating an innovative and closely networked ecosystem of companies and research institutions in the field of sustainable battery techniques in Germany," as stated by the office of Robert Habeck.