Apr 14, 2026
Voltavate’s approach to manufacturing-integrated battery separators is backed by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) through a $3.55 million pilot-scale program
The way batteries are manufactured today is under increasing pressure.
As global demand accelerates, manufacturers are being pushed to scale faster while maintaining performance, safety, and cost efficiency. At the same time, supply chains remain highly concentrated and dependent on specialised third-party suppliers—limiting flexibility, increasing risk, and constraining innovation.
Voltavate was founded on a simple idea:
What if one of the most critical components in a battery could be rethought—not just as a material, but as part of the manufacturing process itself?
Today, that idea is taking a major step forward.
Voltavate’s manufacturing-integrated separator technology has been backed by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) through a $3.55 million pilot-scale program, supporting the transition from laboratory development to real-world manufacturing.
Based in Melbourne, the project will establish pilot-scale production and integrate Voltavate’s technology directly into battery cells for independent performance and safety validation under real-world conditions.
In conventional battery manufacturing, separators are produced separately and sourced from a limited number of specialised suppliers. This creates dependency, reduces flexibility, and adds complexity to already strained supply chains.
Voltavate is taking a different approach.
Its platform enables battery manufacturers to produce separators directly on their production lines—similar to how electrodes are manufactured today.
This shift transforms separators from a sourced component into an integrated manufacturing step.
By enabling in-house production, Voltavate allows manufacturers to:
Tailor separator properties to their specific cell designs
Reduce reliance on third-party suppliers with limited flexibility
Improve production yield and consistency
Simplify supply chains
Support more localised and vertically integrated manufacturing
Importantly, the platform is designed as a drop-in solution that integrates with existing production lines without requiring fundamental changes to infrastructure.
“This project marks a critical step in moving from lab-scale development into real manufacturing environments,” said Amir Hooshang Taheri, CEO of Voltavate.
“We’re focused on improving how batteries are made—reducing production waste, enabling scalable manufacturing, and giving manufacturers more control over a key component of the battery.”
Darren Miller, CEO at ARENA, said: “This project demonstrates how Australia can play a stronger role in the global battery value chain by supporting the development of advanced manufacturing capabilities for clean energy technologies.
ARENA’s support helps accelerate the transition from innovation to real-world deployment, strengthening local capability while contributing to more resilient and scalable battery manufacturing globally.”
Through this project, Voltavate will:
Establish pilot-scale manufacturing capability
Integrate its technology into battery cells
Validate performance and safety through independent testing
Generate prototype cells for customer evaluation
This work represents a key step toward commercial deployment, enabling industry partners to adopt the technology within existing manufacturing environments.
Beyond technical validation, the project contributes to a broader shift in how batteries are manufactured—toward systems that are more distributed, adaptable, and less dependent on concentrated supply chains.
Voltavate is positioning itself at the center of this transition, enabling manufacturers to gain greater control over their production processes while improving efficiency, performance, and scalability.
Visit the Project page here:
Pilot-scale manufacturing and validation of advanced battery separator technology