We are pleased to present an update on our operations for August 2021.
Ionic Manufacturing Scaleup Progress
We are pleased to announce that we have finalised the schematic design for our supercapacitor ink production and electrode material manufacturing facility. This is the culmination of over 18 months of planning, technology refinement and equipment trials. Our plant will demonstrate our ability to produce our reduced graphene oxide supercapacitor electrode materials at scale, a critical next step on our path to commercialisation.
We have begun the procurement process for the equipment necessary for the first 2 of 3 stages of the project, which will be funded from existing capital resources (~$550,000). The facility will be located near Monash University to facilitate ongoing collaboration with the Monash team and leveraging the equipment and facilities at Monash as required.
The facility will also incorporate Ionic’s own lab space which will enable us to accelerate our research and development efforts to a much greater extent than we are currently able. This will ensure that we can continue to iterate on our technologies and develop new technologies that will support the future of our company as we evolve.
Research and Development Progress
On the materials technology, we have continued work in the labs to refine our materials and have achieved the primary technology milestones that we have been aiming for including equivalent series resistance (ESR) and energy density. We are now working on several further technical requirements to ensure superior performance across several secondary specifications – such as long lifecycle testing and various environmental conditions.
We have continued working with our industry partners to demonstrate and validate our technologies with a view to incorporate our materials into the next generation of energy storage devices and we look forward to further development of these relationships in the coming months.
Progress Toward IPO
We are also in the process of working toward an IPO as soon as we are able. We have engaged legal support for the preparation of a prospectus and beginning the process of seeking approval from ASX for listing. It is still too early to say when this will be at this stage, however we are committed to ensuring the best possible result for our existing shareholders who have supported us over the long term.
COVID-19 Impact
As with most businesses, restrictions and constraints associated with the COVID-19 pandemic have continued to present some challenges. Access to the Monash labs has been constrained and property inspections for our manufacturing facility have been impossible. We’ve also been unable to travel to develop the relationships that our industry partnerships will depend upon, although we have managed to progress our technical collaboration. Nevertheless, we have made progress across all those areas listed above and we look forward to lockdowns lifting so we can pursue all these opportunities without hindrance.