Ferroglobe PLC has entered into a joint development agreement with BioSolar Inc to pursue opportunities in the lithium-ion battery market.
Ferroglobe subsidiary Silicio Ferrosolar SLU - based in A Coruna, Spain - will collaborate with BioSolar to develop and market silicon anode materials for high-power, high-energy lithium-ion batteries, Ferroglobe announced.
"We are excited to partner with BioSolar, a company whose technology represents tremendous upside in the development of lithium-ion batteries with respect to capacity, efficiency and safety," Ferroglobe executive vice president of technology Benoist Ollivier said in a statement.
Ferroglobe will look to capitalize on a potential high-growth market opportunity, citing recent reports predicting a compound annual growth rate of 21.5% in the silicon anode battery market through 2024.
"We continue to focus on the development of high-value-added advanced materials and are confident that our focus on silicon anode material development will yield results that ultimately reduce costs and improve output," Ollivier said.
The agreement follows a February announcement from BioSolar - based in Santa Clarita, California, United States - that it had achieved a significant performance milestone in silicon micro-particle anodes, with data suggesting its proprietary silicon anode additive technology could achieve substantially higher capacity at reduced costs.
"We are pleased to have Ferroglobe as a development partner, a company with a proven track record of developing and supplying silicon materials to global marketplaces," BioSolar chief executive officer David Lee said in a statement.
"We are confident that this partnership and its subsequent results will continue to demonstrate not only higher performance but also better price points, strengthening BioSolar's commercial viability and market potential," he added.