Nexeon Raises £30 million for Next Generation Li-ion Batteries
The Oxfordshire-based company is using silicon to increase the surface area of the anode to increase the power density of the cells.
The £30m investment comes from existing investors, as well as adding Woodford Investment Management, bringing the total investment to £85m ($120m).
Nexeon will use the new funds to acquire IP and complementary technology, to open a development lab in Asia near its key customers, and to begin work on the design of a larger manufacturing facility. These initiatives will further strengthen Nexeon’s ability to achieve world-leading levels of battery energy density, and to satisfy the demand for superior battery performance in applications ranging from smart phones, wearables, drones and other mobile consumer devices to e-bikes and electric vehicles.
“We are delighted at the confidence shown by our existing investors and by our new investor, Woodford Investment Management, who clearly share our belief in the potential for silicon anode technology and acknowledge the strength of our management and product development teams,” said Dr Paul Atherton, Nexeon Chairman.
“It is now widely accepted that silicon materials are the key to improved energy densities in Li-ion batteries, and that the winning technology will be both high performance and low cost. This investment will allow us to progress our technology, our low-cost manufacturing capability and our commercial partnerships,” said CEO Dr Scott Brown.
Nexeon was founded by Imperial Innovations as a result of work done by Professor Mino Green, Emeritus Professor at the Department of Electrical Engineering at Imperial College London, and has invested a total of £22.4m into the company before this round of funding. The major investment started in 2007 with £4.25m, followed by £10m round in 2009. The most recent investement by Imperial Innovations was in August 2011 for £15 million as part of the Series C investment round of £40 million. This round was used to scale up the production of its latest silicon anode materials to around 250 tonnes per year for commercial supply. The company also signed a strategic deal with chemical supplier Wacker for the supply of materials, and Wacker invested in Round C.
“We believe this new funding will allow the Company to establish even closer links with its target markets in Asia as well as to capture complementary intellectual property which will help it to consolidate its position at the forefront of the race to commercialise silicon as an alternative to carbon-based battery anode systems,” said said Russ Cummings, CEO of Imperial Innovations.
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