NEW YORK & OSLO, Norway & LUXEMBOURG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--FREYR Battery (NYSE: FREY) (“FREYR”), a developer of clean, next-generation battery cell production capacity, has entered into an agreement with Aleees (TWSE: 5227), the Taiwan-based lithium-iron phosphate (“LFP”) cathode battery material manufacturer. The agreement, which includes ongoing services and support from Aleees, provides FREYR with a worldwide license to produce and sell LFP cathode material based on Aleees’ technology, and to build production facilities leveraging Aleees’ industrial expertise. FREYR anticipates that the agreement will enable FREYR to meet the future LFP cathode material needs of the Giga Arctic battery production facility in Mo i Rana, Norway. Volumes could furthermore be deployed to FREYR’s planned Giga America project in the U.S.
Aleees offers complete LFP cathode battery material manufacturing technology and related patents to customers, primarily within the energy storage and EV battery spaces. Through the license and services agreement, FREYR has obtained non-exclusive rights to use Aleees’ technology and production methodology related to active LFP cathode material.
FREYR previously announced plans to establish an LFP cathode plant in the Nordic region with the ambition to commence production in 2024, coinciding with the anticipated ramp-up of operations from Giga Arctic. Establishing a Nordic LFP cathode supply chain is expected to bring strong economic benefits to FREYR and the Nordic region based on localized and decarbonized production and transportation of raw materials to battery cell manufacturing facilities. FREYR is also in initial discussions with other 24M licensing partners for the potential sale of LFP material produced by FREYR which could enable value creating opportunities through further upscaled and decarbonized production facilities.
“There is high global demand at present for active cathode material in general and LFP material in particular. By consummating this licensing agreement with Aleees, FREYR is well-positioned to achieve speed and scale of LFP cathode production for our Giga Arctic battery manufacturing plant and beyond. Aleees is one of the best-established LFP cathode producers outside of mainland China and is recognized for their world-class production technology. FREYR should derive an advantage by accessing the knowledge and capabilities of the Aleees team to help FREYR build a strong, localized supply chain for high quality raw materials,” commented Dr. Tilo Hauke, EVP of Supply Chain Management, FREYR.
“We are eager to support FREYR in bringing more innovation and greater sustainability to the battery industry. This license agreement lays the foundation to the start of a long and beneficial relationship, in which we will bring our expertise and ability to the Nordic region, to ensure that the supply chain stays local while battery production remains global, to keep up with the intense demand stemming from the ongoing energy transition,” added Edward Chang, Chief Executive Officer of Aleees.
Aleees is an approved supplier of LFP cathode material to 24M Technologies, Inc. (“24M”), FREYR’s U.S.-based partner. 24M’s SemiSolid™ technology platform features a larger and thicker electrode design that is intended to deliver higher energy density per volumetric unit while also reducing production costs.
“Earlier this year, we announced our intention to explore opportunities with Aleees as a potential partner for LFP cathode development. With the licensing agreement now signed, I’m pleased to say that we are in a solid position to keep momentum on our journey to localize and decarbonize battery cell production and their supply chains in the Nordic region. LFP cathode materials comprise 40% or more of the cost of a battery cell and currently account for more than 45% of the projected full-cycle supply chain carbon footprint of cells. Through this agreement and in cooperation with Aleees, FREYR is positioned to become a low cost and low carbon producer of LFP cathode material. We are honored and pleased to add Aleees to our continuously growing list of leading partners in the sustainable battery value chain,” commented FREYR’s Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Tom Einar Jensen.
About FREYR Battery
FREYR Battery aims to provide industrial scale clean battery solutions to reduce global emissions. Listed on the New York Stock Exchange, FREYR’s mission is to produce green battery cells to accelerate the decarbonization of energy and transportation systems globally. FREYR has commenced building the first of its planned factories in Mo i Rana, Norway and announced potential development of industrial scale battery cell production in Vaasa, Finland, and the United States. FREYR intends to install 50 GWh of battery cell capacity by 2025 and 100 GWh annual capacity by 2028 and 200 GWh of annual capacity by 2030. To learn more about FREYR, please visit www.freyrbattery.com.
About Aleees
Aleees (TWSE: 5227), founded in 2005 with main office and factory located in Taiwan, is a lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) battery material manufacturer with longest history as well as an IP licensor in the world, and is also one of the few companies outside China with [complete] LFP battery material manufacturing technology and patents. Aleees Taiwan owns more than 120 exclusive patents worldwide, with customers including world-renowned energy storage battery and EV battery customers across Europe, U.S., Japan, Korea, and Asia. At present Aleees co-develops various types of LFP, LFMP products with more than 40 global customers, and produces high-quality, low-cost, and long-life cycle LFP cathode materials. In the 17 years since its establishment, it has accumulated more than 15,000 tons of LFP product shipments totally from Taiwan facility.
At the same time, Aleees has also achieved outstanding results in ESG, and its corporate governance performance has been among the top 5% of all listed companies in Taiwan for 7 consecutive years.
Aleees is committed to providing customers with first-class quality, safe and reliable products, and has obtained major international certifications including ISO9001, ISO14001, ISO14064, ISO/TS 16949, OHSAS18001 and corporate social responsibility AA1000 and so on.
For more information, please visit www.aleees.com.
Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
All statements, other than statements of present or historical fact included in this press release, including, without limitation, statements regarding FREYR’s ability to develop clean battery solutions and achieve large-scale battery cell production; the licensing agreement’s ability to enable FREYR to supply the future needs of its Giga Arctic battery production facility in Mo i Rana, Norway; the possibility that volumes could eventually be deployed to FREYR’s planned Giga America project in the U.S.; the ability of initial discussions with other 24M licensing partners for the potential supply of LFP material to enable value creating opportunities through upscaled and decarbonized production facilities; the projection that LFP cathode materials are expected to account for 45% of the projected full-cycle supply chain carbon footprint of cells to be produced in Mo i Rana; the expectation that a Nordic LFP cathode supply chain will bring strong economic benefits to FREYR and the Nordic region based on localized and decarbonized production and transportation of raw materials to battery cell manufacturing facilities; FREYR’s ability to achieve speed and scale when it comes to producing LFP cathode for FREYR’s Giga Arctic battery manufacturing plant; 24M’s SemiSolid™ technology platform’s ability to deliver higher energy density per volumetric unit while also reducing production costs; the licensing agreement’s ability to lay the foundation for keeping up with the intense demand stemming from the ongoing energy transition; and the ability of Aleees’ knowledge and capabilities to contribute in achieving FREYR’s goal of building a strong, localized supply chain for quality raw materials are forward-looking and involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the expected results.
Most of these factors are outside FREYR’s control and difficult to predict. Information about factors that could materially affect FREYR is set forth under the “Risk Factors” section in (i) FREYR’s Registration Statement on Form S-3 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on September 1, 2022, and (ii) FREYR’s annual report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 9, 2022, available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
