Battery production company, Inobat Auto has announced the acquisition of a site in Slovakia to build the world’s first AI-enhanced high throughput R&D center, which will produce the first ever client customized electric vehicle batteries by 2021.
The facility will enable European electric vehicle manufacturers to reduce dependence on imports from Asia and will contribute to a strong European energy production and storage infrastructure now recognized as vital for growth and EU technological independence, particularly after the supply chain disruption demonstrated by recent restrictions following the outbreak of Covid-19.
The 290,000ft2 (27,000m2) facility close to Bratislava will house the world’s first 100MWh facility combining proprietary cutting-edge High Throughput Process (“HTP”) R&D with prototype battery cell-manufacturing capabilities under one roof.
The facility is expected to be the first in the world to produce batteries to specifications of the vehicle manufacturer, rather than selling from a catalog, and will enable European electric vehicle manufacturers to reduce dependence on imports from Asia.
Backed by IPM Group, the leading InfraTech investor, and Wildcat Discovery Technologies’ (“Wildcat”), InoBat Auto will manufacture the first bespoke battery cells in 2021. Through the use of Wildcat’s proprietary R&D, InoBat Auto will have the ability to continuously and rapidly develop next generation customer specific battery cells through HTP and AI.
Located in Voderady, just 40km from Bratislava and in close proximity to nine major Original Equipment Manufacturers (“OEMS”) brands, including Peugeot, KIA and Jaguar Land Rover, the R&D center will complete the first phase of the roll out of InoBat Auto and will be followed by the fundraising for Phase 2 – a EUR 1bn InoBat Auto Gigafactory, which will provide an estimated 240,000 EVs with cutting edge batteries by 2024.
InoBat Auto has acquired the site from Korean technology group, Fine DNC, which has extemsive expertise in the automotive and electronics industries. Redevelopment of the site to meet the high specifications required for advanced battery manufacture in scale is set to begin later this year, and will create an estimated 150 new highly-skilled jobs.
Marian Bocek, Co-Founder, InoBat Auto commented: “The acquisition of the Voderady site is a landmark step to realizing our vision for InoBat Auto and will be vital to accelerating the much-needed electrification of all forms of transport. Being able to combine cutting edge R&D with scale manufacturing capabilities in one site will allow us to select the optimum composition of battery materials to meet the bespoke performance requirements of vehicle manufacturers, whilst also creating a powerful supply chain in the heart of Europe.”
