Altech Batteries Ltd (ASX:ATC, OTC:ALTHF) has welcomed progress towards completing the first of two ABS60 BatteryPack Prototypes, with 240 battery cells fabricated, assembled and initialised at Hermsdorf pilot plant of Fraunhofer IKTS in Germany.
The cells were then cycled through several testing stations at Fraunhofer IKTS Hermsdorf and Arnstadt to confirm homogeneous cathode material distribution as well as the effect of several design improvements.
These improvements led to an increase in charging and discharging time while lowering the nickel content and thus the price of the units, which also demonstrated higher-than-expected energy capacities, a result ATC described as “outstanding” that “strongly supports the chosen electrode design”.
Strong fabrication progress
“Altech’s team in Germany, together with its joint venture partner Fraunhofer, and with the assistance of key suppliers, have made excellent progress on the fabrication of two 60 kilowatt/hour (kWh) CERENERGY® ABS60 BatteryPack prototypes,” Altech Batteries managing director and CEO Iggy Tan said.
“All components for the first BatteryPack have now been fabricated.
“Altech is now completing the welding of the cells to the Cell Contacting System (CCS), after which the five completed battery modules will be delivered to Fraunhofer IKTS in Dresden where all five modules will be mounted into the ABS60 BatteryPack and the first ABS60 Prototype will be completed.
“The BatteryPack will then be available for testing and demonstration to potential customers, thereby assisting Altech in securing offtake and finance for the 120 megawatt/hour (MWh) CERENERGY® battery plant to be constructed on Altech’s land in Germany.”
Specifications met
Initial testing of the Prototype’s cells has met all expected specifications, including volt range, current capacity, energy capacity, rated energy capacity, discharge current, operational state of charge (SoC) range, internal operating temperature, ambient operating temperature, IP or waterproofing rating and 24-hour cycle capacity.
The 60kWh Altech Battery Pack consists of five 12kWh modules with 48 cells each, mounted on top of each other and sealed in a thermal isolated stainless steel hood housing, which can then be mounted into the GridPack to be used in array.