Deputy Prime Minister, Hon Richard Marles MP, the Hon Ed Husic MP, Minister for Industry and Science and Libby Coker MP, Member for Corangamite today visited the site for the proposed Recharge Industries™ Australian Gigafactory at the Avalon Airport Industrial Precinct.
The parliamentarians, along with representatives of project partners, the Australian Workers Union (AWU), the Avalon Airport Authority and Jacobs, toured the proposed site of the 30GWh lithium-ion Gigafactory.
During the visit, the Ministers received a project briefing on the Gigafactory, outlining its regional and national benefits and the transformative opportunity it offers to develop a national battery ecosystem, in line with the government’s commitments to Australian-made solutions to energy and emissions challenges.
Investment in renewable energy sources is driving demand globally for batteries, with global battery demand forecast to grow at 34 per cent per annum to 2030, increasing 18-fold on 2020 levels. Australia is in a key position to establish a thriving battery industry, with abundant minerals onshore and the capacity for thriving manufacturing and recycling industries. Harnessing this unique position, Australia can be on top of this international opportunity and support domestic resilience by producing battery cells onshore.
Recharge Industries™ CEO, Rob Fitzpatrick, said: “Globally, the energy landscape is shifting rapidly, with government subsidies for battery cell manufacturing transforming the industry. The Ministers’ visit to the Recharge Australia™ Avalon Gigafactory site signals a recognition that sovereign battery cells manufacturing capabilities are critical in order to meet Australia’s net zero ambitions.
“Recharge Industries™ implores Australian governments to firm up their commitment to renewable energy generation and support the large-scale manufacture and deployment of battery energy storage in order to meet the 2030 target requirement of 82 per cent renewable energy.
“There is a massive opportunity for Australia to not only produce battery cells but, in parallel, build out a domestic value-added supply chain addressing the long-held concerns about Australia being a “dig and ship” economy.
The Avalon Gigafactory will be a complementary facility to a 30GWh lithium-ion battery cell Gigafactory at Cambois, United Kingdom that has the potential to expand up to 48GWh.
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