Nano One Materials is a technology company that develops cathode production processes that could disrupt international critical mineral supply chains for lithium-ion batteries. This means that battery materials can be made with fewer steps, less waste and fewer emissions at low-cost while having high-performance.
Could you tell us more about the One-Pot technology for cathode production?
We go directly from metals into a coated cathode, eliminating the need for intermediate sulfates like iron sulfate or nickel sulfate, and we do so by combining precursor, cathode and coating processes into one process. Precursor and cathode are most commonly done by different companies and in some cases by different nations, but we integrate them into one step. This integration reduces complexity, capital cost, operating cost, and energy intensity, leading to a lower CO2 footprint.
By eliminating sulfates, we remove the associated waste stream, produce no wastewater and sulfate discharge entirely. This allows us to work within free-trading nations to diversify the supply chain away from China. Our technology applies to various cathode materials, and our current main focus is on LFP, but we have development programs for NMC and other chemistries as well.
It will be interesting for our readers to learn more about LFP, which stands for lithium iron phosphate. Could you tell us what it is and what are its promises?
LFP is the lowest cost, longest-lasting, and safest of all lithium-ion battery chemistries and the latest LFP battery packs from China and Korea have energy densities and driving range that is now comparable and competitive with NMC. LFP has already achieved a 60-70% market share in China, and we expect similar market shares in North America, Europe, and the Indo-Pacific region in the next five to ten years.
How do you hope to actually compete with China? You mentioned that your technology lowers costs. Does it lower them sufficiently so that there could be an economic incentive for companies to opt for your product instead of a Chinese one?
We believe that, pound for pound, equipment for equipment, we can compete cost-effectively against the incumbent processes in China. It requires investment and time to reach the necessary volumes, but our economics indicate we can compete effectively worldwide. However, we cannot simply copy China's processes due to environmental discharge and wastewater issues. Instead, we must innovate in cathode material production and supply chains to create a more environmentally competitive solution in the West.
Could you expand on the China supply chain and how it affects your strategy?
China largely controls the nickel and iron supply chain, governing their control over NMC and LFP. While China does significant lithium hydroxide conversion, their stranglehold is mainly on nickel and iron due to their investments and environmental footprint in China and Indonesia. This has kept Western producers away, giving China control over nickel for batteries and the NMC precursor process, which involves massive discharge of wastewater and sulfates
For LFP, China’s unique and antiquated TiO2 production results in large tailings of iron sulfate, which is processed into iron phosphate but leaves behind a dirty sulfate discharge.
To decouple from these supply chains, we must innovate by using class one nickel and iron metals directly. This diversification of supply chains is at the core of Nano One's strategy – avoid the damaging waste streams to enable supply chains to scale in the west.
Could you tell us more about your partnerships with mining companies, like Rio Tinto, or Sumitomo Metal Mining?
Both Sumitomo Metal Mining and Rio Tinto are significant partners and both have a 5% equity stake in Nano One. Sumitomo Metal Mining partnered with us last September, and we are working on commercializing our LFP technology for potential licensing or joint ventures outside Japan. They are large and vertically integrated miner in the battery material space, from base metals to fully baked cathode materials used in Panasonic's batteries.
Rio Tinto partnered with us two years ago. This partnership focuses on developing iron metal powder as a feedstock for LFP. Rio Tinto produces large volumes of iron metal powder directly from high grade Canadian iron-titanium ore, with no waste stream using a green, hydroelectric-powered process. This collaboration leverages the cleanest, greenest, most IRA-compatible supply of battery metals for cathodes.
When you go and speak with major mining companies, do you sense enthusiasm in them for what you have to offer as a technology for their product?
Yes, absolutely. Our One-Pot technology enables lithium carbonate to be added directly with the other metals, making Nano One a potential lithium carbonate offtaker that eliminates the need to invest in or offshore the conversion to lithium hydroxide. This is an exciting prospect for North American lithium producers.
This capability of keeping materials within North America and directly using them in cathode materials without offshoring adds tremendous value. It is becoming a necessity not only in North America and Europe but also in other regions, because it eliminates the added costs and environmental footprint of offshoring raw materials for processing in problematic jurisdictions.
Could you elaborate on that and the environmental benefits of your technology?
We have 40 patents granted and 50 to 60 in prosecution in jurisdictions like China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, India, Canada, the US, and Europe. Our large and growing patent portfolio is significant for protecting our innovations. Regarding GHG emissions, a third-party LCA study with Minviro showed 50-60% GHG reductions when comparing LFP to LFP and NMC to NMC. Comparing LFP to NMC shows an 85% GHG reduction, as LFP inherently has a lower footprint.
LFP also uses all the lithium, unlike NMC, where 30% of lithium does not work inside the battery. This means LFP batteries have much better lithium utilization, lasting 5,000 cycles compared to NMC's 1,000 cycles. Environmentally, our process eliminates wastewater and waste chemicals, and reducesi process water by up to 80%. These benefits make LFP a superior choice in terms of sustainability and utility.
Could you tell us more about your recent deal with Worley?
This partnership accelerates our path to revenue and gives us a bigger slice of the pie. Worley is a very large company, and the deal includes licensing, engineering, and equipment revenues. We are adopting a design-once, build-many strategy, which is a modular approach to making cathode plants. While this strategy is common in the petrochemical industry, it is new to the battery material space. Worley and Nano One are likely the first to implement it here.
The design-once approach benefits engineering by compressing time, value, and procurement, and it de-risks financial decisions, speeding up permitting. The build-many part monetizes these benefits by avoiding custom engineering for each plant, which traditionally adds cost and risk. This approach de-risks and accelerates technology adoption. Our first focus is on One-Pot LFP, but we plan to apply this approach to NMC and manganese-rich materials. The partnership leverages Worley's global client base, increasing sales and building plants faster, benefiting both parties.
Speaking of expansion and growth, where do you hope to see Nano One three years from now?
We have several lines of growth. We acquired Johnson Matthey’s LFP facility in Candiac, Quebec, and decommissioned all the wastewater and waste chemical handling systems. We have brought it up to a 200-ton pilot scale and aim to increase that to 1 or 2,000 tons. Though small by China, Korea, or Japan standards, it serves as a pathway to early revenues and a pilot plant for larger offtakes, fueling the construction of larger plants, possibly in joint ventures.
Our ultimate strategy is to license our technology widely. One company alone cannot change the supply chain; many companies must adopt iron or nickel metal powders instead of sulfates. This widespread adoption will drive interest from the automotive industry and others. We aim for our technology to be adopted by many players, generating revenues back to Nano One as a royalty company. Production-related projects will be spun off into separate entities, with the pilot facility and royalty-bearing part remaining as the core of Nano One.
