New Zealand start-up CarbonScape has selected the Sunila site in Finland to build its biographite demonstration plant, with construction expected to start next year.

The company says its biographite is designed “to replace mined or fossil-based synthetic graphite in lithium-ion batteries, addressing critical supply chain and sustainability challenges.” It offers a “low cost, high performance, sustainable” alternative to traditional graphite,” claims CarbonScape.

Production is based on “sustainable” biomass, such as woodchip, from which carbon is recovered and converted into graphite. The process is also faster and uses 50% of the temperature needed to make synthetic graphite, the company adds.

The start-up has been running a pilot plant in New Zealand since 2018, where it has been optimising its biographite production process. The new demonstration plant is expected to scale up the technology, before full commercialisation, Kallanish notes.

Located in Kotka in southern Finland, the Sunila site is owned by Stora Enso, a Finnish paper and renewable products provider. Stora Enso, which is developing bio-based anodes, led an $18 million investment in CarbonScape last September to commercialise biographite in Europe and the US. The company closed its pulp production and lignin extraction operations at Sunila last year and will now lease part of the site to CarbonScape.

“Our partnership with Stora Enso and the decision to locate our demonstration plant in Sunila underscore the global potential of our technology,” comments Ivan Williams, ceo of CarbonScape. “By producing biographite from sustainable wood sources, we’re not just creating a new supply chain – we’re redefining what’s possible in battery technology.”

Hosting the demonstration plant at the Sunila site aligns with Stora Enso’s aim to advance sustainable battery technologies, adds Juuso Konttinen, senior vice president of biomaterials growth businesses at Stora Enso.

The plant will produce larger biographite samples for original equipment manufacturers and battery cell makers. Sample production is expected in 2026.