Auction win expected to get Endicott battery plant running sooner

ENDICOTT — A good buy at a North Carolina auction is expected to speed the completion of a battery plant at the former home of IBM.

The Imperium3 New York consortium had planned to begin production at the end of 2019 at the Huron Campus in the village of Endicott. It now expects production to get underway in the first half of 2019.

The schedule was moved up when Imperium3 paid $5 million at an auction for battery-making equipment in North Carolina that cost the previous owner more than $200 million.

Magnis Resources Ltd., the Australian–based partner in the consortium, said in a news release that the purchase increased its share of Imperium3 to 41 percent.

The equipment was part of Alevo, a bankrupt company that sought to make custom batteries in North Carolina, according to press reports. Magnis said the equipment “includes all operations such as slurry making, coating cell assembly, formation and testing, module assembly and packing.”

The equipment will be disconnected, packed, and sent to the Huron Campus. There, the equipment will be modified to incorporate Imperium3’s proprietary technology, and augmented with equipment to make cylindrical batteries, Magnis said in the release.

“Our battery plant build in New York is progressing with excellence and is demonstrating both quality and pace,” said Magnis Chairman Frank Poullas. “Finalizing the recent purchase of equipment has provided another pivotal opportunity for Magnis, enabling an increasing share of a plant that will be in production next year.”

At the same time, Poullas pointed out that Imperium3’s battery making process doesn’t include cobalt, an element used to help stabilize most lithium batteries. He noted that was a strategic advantage for Imperium3 because cobalt prices surged 60 percent in the past year and now top $80,000 a metric ton.

Lithium batteries are used in cell phones, electronic devices, and some plug-in electric automobiles. Demand has been strong for years and Imperium3 said the plant’s initial production has already been sold.

Imperium3 has received state assictance since its founding in 2016. Empire State Development offered Imperium3 performance-based incentives totaling $7.5 million, including a $4 million Upstate Revitalization Initiative grant and $3.5 million in Excelsior Jobs Program tax credits. Additionally, the state expects Imperium3 will qualify for an estimated $5.75 million in New York Investment Tax Credits.

Imperium3 is a consortium of companies, including three from the Southern Tier: C4V, from Binghamton, which will provide the core intellectual property; C&D Assembly, of Groton, which is supplying electronic board assembly and battery testing and Primet Precision Materials, of Ithaca, which is offering advanced processing of materials.

The organization expects to create 230 new jobs in the next five years.

Other New York state companies involved include Kodak and CMP Advanced Mechanical Solutions.

Founded in the fourth quarter of 2017, the consortium’s stated goal was to commercialize CV4’s technology for making more efficient and less expensive lithium ion batteries while operating the state’s first giga-factory producing lithium ion batteries.

Additionally, Magnis, a publicly-traded Australian company, will provide anode materials and Boston Energy and Innovation, another Australian business specializing in clean energy, will provide international sales and marketing. More than 20 international companies have been qualified by C4V as strategic suppliers of high-quality lithium, electrolyte, separator and other critical raw ingredients to Imperium3NY — including a Lithium mine just hours from Binghamton, according to a news release.   

ENDICOTT — A good buy at a North Carolina auction is expected to speed the completion of a battery plant at the former home of IBM.

The Imperium3 New York consortium had planned to begin production at the end of 2019 at the Huron Campus in the village of Endicott. It now expects production to get underway in the first half of 2019.

The schedule was moved up when Imperium3 paid $5 million at an auction for battery-making equipment in North Carolina that cost the previous owner more than $200 million.

Magnis Resources Ltd., the Australian–based partner in the consortium, said in a news release that the purchase increased its share of Imperium3 to 41 percent.

The equipment was part of Alevo, a bankrupt company that sought to make custom batteries in North Carolina, according to press reports. Magnis said the equipment “includes all operations such as slurry making, coating cell assembly, formation and testing, module assembly and packing.”

The equipment will be disconnected, packed, and sent to the Huron Campus. There, the equipment will be modified to incorporate Imperium3’s proprietary technology, and augmented with equipment to make cylindrical batteries, Magnis said in the release.

“Our battery plant build in New York is progressing with excellence and is demonstrating both quality and pace,” said Magnis Chairman Frank Poullas. “Finalizing the recent purchase of equipment has provided another pivotal opportunity for Magnis, enabling an increasing share of a plant that will be in production next year.”

At the same time, Poullas pointed out that Imperium3’s battery making process doesn’t include cobalt, an element used to help stabilize most lithium batteries. He noted that was a strategic advantage for Imperium3 because cobalt prices surged 60 percent in the past year and now top $80,000 a metric ton.

Lithium batteries are used in cell phones, electronic devices, and some plug-in electric automobiles. Demand has been strong for years and Imperium3 said the plant’s initial production has already been sold.

Imperium3 has received state assictance since its founding in 2016. Empire State Development offered Imperium3 performance-based incentives totaling $7.5 million, including a $4 million Upstate Revitalization Initiative grant and $3.5 million in Excelsior Jobs Program tax credits. Additionally, the state expects Imperium3 will qualify for an estimated $5.75 million in New York Investment Tax Credits.

Imperium3 is a consortium of companies, including three from the Southern Tier: C4V, from Binghamton, which will provide the core intellectual property; C&D Assembly, of Groton, which is supplying electronic board assembly and battery testing and Primet Precision Materials, of Ithaca, which is offering advanced processing of materials.

The organization expects to create 230 new jobs in the next five years.

Other New York state companies involved include Kodak and CMP Advanced Mechanical Solutions.

Founded in the fourth quarter of 2017, the consortium’s stated goal was to commercialize CV4’s technology for making more efficient and less expensive lithium ion batteries while operating the state’s first giga-factory producing lithium ion batteries.

Additionally, Magnis, a publicly-traded Australian company, will provide anode materials and Boston Energy and Innovation, another Australian business specializing in clean energy, will provide international sales and marketing. More than 20 international companies have been qualified by C4V as strategic suppliers of high-quality lithium, electrolyte, separator and other critical raw ingredients to Imperium3NY — including a Lithium mine just hours from Binghamton, according to a news release.