Amid the federal government's push for local manufacturing of next-gen renewable technologies, a pioneering Illawarra battery manufacturer has confirmed its first commercial production plant will be located in the United States.
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On Tuesday, Sicona, which spun out of research developed by academics at the University of Wollongong, announced its first commercial production facility will be in the south-eastern United States, to be located in the hub of US battery and electric vehicle manufacturing.
The company produces anode materials that are used in batteries that power electric vehicles and consumer devices.
Headquartered in North Wollongong, the company unveiled plans for a large manufacturing facility in Shellharbour last year, but co-founder Christiaan Jordaan said with the subsidies and tax breaks available in the United States, that have spurred an ecosystem of battery supply chain companies there, it needed to be where the action was.
"The numbers don't lie, hundreds of billions of dollars of private capital have crowded into the US, far surpassing any of the direct spending by the US federal government on projects," he said.
The Albanese government has been touting its efforts to supercharge clean manufacturing in Australia, after years of offshoring.
While the details of the Future Made in Australia platform are yet to be revealed, it is expected this will include tax breaks and production credits, as the government acknowledges it cannot outspend countries such as the United States and Europe with direct subsidies.
Mr Jordaan welcomed the move, saying these were "green shoots", but said the government also needed to tackle the fundamentals of the business environment, including cutting the cost of energy, making industrial land available and creating a supportive regulatory environment.
"The devil will be in the detail and the implementation, and it needs to happen soon, and not take forever and a day to get enacted," he said.
The company remains committed to its headquarters in the Illawarra, including a 30-person R&D and management team, but Mr Jordaan said it was not limiting its sights in the future, with Australia a part, or not, of that manufacturing horizon.
"The US is the first stop, but ultimately we are building a global business which means the US, Europe and Asia," he said.
