NEO Battery Materials Provides Corporate Updates
Vancouver, June 28, 2021 - NEO Battery Materials Ltd. (TSXV: NBM) (OTC: NBMFF) ("NEO" or the "Company") is pleased to provide the following updates on its recent corporate activities and initiatives that includes 1) commercial-level composite anode which consists of NEO's silicon and conventional graphite, 2) new activity for integrating NEO's silicon into sulfide solid-state electrolytes (SSE), and 3) developments on NDAs, non-dilutive financing, mining work, and OTCQB listing.
"We are currently in the process of strategically placing NEO on an accelerated route to commercialization," commented Spencer Huh, President and CEO of NEO. "The development of our prototype is our emphasis as we are researching to increase the specific capacity of our high silicon content anodes with graphite, and we are also onto a new strategic move into integrating NEO's silicon with solid-state electrolytes. We are in discussion with parties in the industry to explore and discover potential synergies and mutual benefit for NEO's silicon anode technology."
NEO Silicon Anode Prototype Update
Following the successful integration of NEO's silicon (Si) technology in commercial graphite anodes, NEO is also pleased to announce that it is in the scale-up phase and is on track to develop its first prototype of the silicon anode material. In phase one, NEO will provide graphite/Si mixture anode materials with different levels of NEO's Si content for controllable anode specific capacity. NEO has recently achieved ~500 mAh/g, which is a 70% capacity enhancement compared to commercial graphite anodes. By increasing NEO's Si content, about a two times higher value with reasonable long-term durability for commercialization will be soon achieved.
Dr. J. H. Park, Director and Chief Scientific Advisor of NEO, commented, "Our silicon anode technology and process has been researched and refined for 7 years. We are positioning NEO to take active steps towards commercialization and advancing the nanocoating technology for high power battery cells for electric vehicles."
NEO has commenced to formulate its silicon anodes on a reactor to model and simulate the contiguous, single-step process. This step is required for large scale manufacturing along with the feasibility study and pilot project design. The Company will be moving forward to test its silicon anodes through full pouch cells and will continue to evaluate and improve the materials through third-party laboratory tests and validations.
Solid-State Electrolyte Test Initiative
As the latest initiative, Dr. Park will begin the testing and modification of NEO's silicon anode materials with sulfide-based solid-state electrolytes to enable compatibility and working performance with solid-state batteries. NEO deems that the integration into solid-state battery technology is of essence as the industry is facing a solid-state transition due to cost, run-time, durability, and safety.
Strategic Developments: NDA, Non-Dilutive Financing, Mining Work, OTCQB
As stated, NEO's technology has gained attention from parties in the battery materials and metals industry. Over the past three months, the Company has signed 11 NDAs which include solid-state electrolyte (SSE) developer, battery cell, materials, and metals developers and manufacturers, and financial advisory firms. NEO is currently in technical discussions and will update promptly any progress achieved with the respective parties. As of this time, there are no binding or definitive agreements with these parties, and due to the competitive nature of the industry, all parties will remain confidential. With Korea Metal Silicon Co., NEO is in the process of discussing and attempting to integrate each party's technology to explore synergies within the silicon powder and anode manufacturing process.
Dr. Jinhyuk Lee, Member of the Scientific Advisory Board, Mr. James Suk, and Dr. Andrew Fraser, Advisors of NEO, has initiated the process of applying to non-dilutive financing from the Canadian Federal and Provincial Government. These grants will include but not limited to the Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) Research Grant, grants from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and other provincial grants.
NEO has started its silica mining work in Golden, B.C. Samples will be sent to Bureau Veritas Minerals where they will be analyzed to confirm the percentage of silicon in the quartzite samples. NEO is intending to seek synergies and cost reductions made within the value chain of mine to silicon anode materials and manufacturing. The Company will update its mining work progress and its developments on the value chain integration of silicon metal and anode materials.
The Company is currently in the process of becoming listed on the OTCQB market. The listing would provide additional liquidity for shares through increased exposure in the US market.
About NEO Battery Materials Ltd.
NEO Battery Materials Ltd. is a Vancouver-based resource company focused on battery metals and materials. The Company has staked new mining claims in Golden, BC, along a strike with a quartzite bed, targeting silica in the quartzites for a total of 467 hectares. NEO is also focusing on developing silicon anodes, which provide improvements in capacity and efficiency over lithium-ion batteries using graphite in their anode materials. The Company intends to become an integrated silicon producer and anode materials supplier to the electric vehicle industry. For more information, please visit the Company's website at: https://www.neobatterymaterials.com/.
On behalf of the Board of Directors
Spencer Huh
President and CEO
604-697-2408
shuh@neobatterymaterials.com
This news release includes certain forward-looking statements as well as management's objectives, strategies, beliefs and intentions. Forward looking statements are frequently identified by such words as "may", "will", "plan", "expect", "anticipate", "estimate", "intend" and similar words referring to future events and results. Forward-looking statements are based on the current opinions and expectations of management. All forward-looking information is inherently uncertain and subject to a variety of assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development, fluctuating commodity prices, the effectiveness and feasibility of technologies which have not yet been tested or proven on a commercial scale, competitive risks and the availability of financing, as described in more detail in our recent securities filings available at www.sedar.com. Actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements and we caution against placing undue reliance thereon. We assume no obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements except as required by applicable law.
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