Altech booms after securing €46M German grant for salt battery project

Altech Batteries’ shares surged after receiving conditional binding approval for a €46.11 million (A$80.49M) German government grant to support its groundbreaking CERENERGY sodium-chloride solid-state battery project in Saxony, Germany.

On turnover of 76 million – the biggest trading volume in more than a year - the company’s share price ran up to 3.8 cents – more than 50 per cent higher than yesterday’s close.

The non-dilutive funding, representing about 30 per cent of eligible capital costs, falls under Germany's federal STARK economic development program and materially reduces financing risk for the company’s planned 120MWh annual production facility.

The grant caps off a successful second-stage approval and underscores the strategic importance now being placed on the company’s CERENERGY technology, developed in partnership with the renowned Fraunhofer Institute.

The Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (IKTS), as part of the German-based research powerhouse, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, has been the driving force behind the CERENERGY sodium-chloride solid-state battery technology. 

With sites in Dresden and Hermsdorf, IKTS is recognised as Europe's leading ceramics research institute and has invested more than €35 million (A$61.03m) over the past decade, developing the innovative ceramic electrolyte that underpins CERENERGY batteries. 

In a joint venture with Altech Batteries GmbH, where Fraunhofer holds a 25 per cent stake, IKTS is now advancing the technology toward full-scale commercial production at the planned 120MWh facility in Saxony's Schwarze Pumpe Industrial Park. The aim is to deliver a fire-proof, long-life alternative to lithium-ion systems for grid-scale energy storage.

Unlike lithium-ion batteries, the sodium-chloride solid-state design offers enhanced safety, sustainability and supply-chain independence, positioning it as a compelling solution for stationary energy storage. This is particularly in the European market, where gas supplies have been significantly reduced and markedly higher import costs for US gas have sharply increased the price of domestic and commercial energy.

The funding commitment remains subject to full project financial close by the end of June and parliamentary approval of funds in Germany's 2026 federal budget.

Altech Batteries managing director and chief executive officer Daniel Raihani said: “Securing conditional binding funding approval of up to €46.11 million under Germany’s STARK program is a major milestone for the CERENERGY project. The support reflects the strategic importance of establishing advanced, non-lithium energy storage manufacturing capability in Europe and recognises the technical progress achieved to date in collaboration with Fraunhofer IKTS.” 

The STARK program - the source of Altech’s new funding - is a federal funding initiative administered by Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action.

Germany aims to phase out coal-fired power generation by 2038, or earlier in some regions, to meet climate goals. The transition poses significant risks of job losses and economic disruption in coal-dependent areas.

The program has subsequently been developed to support structural change in regions affected by Germany's coal phase-out, with a particular focus on former lignite (brown coal) mining areas such as Lusatia, the Rhineland, Central German and Helmstedt regions, along with communities hosting hard coal power stations.

In 2024, the program was expanded to include direct investment grants for companies involved in capital-intensive projects for transformative technologies such as battery production, recycling and renewable energy-related manufacturing.

With this major funding milestone in the bag, Altech appears to be on the cusp of constructing Europe's first grid-scale solid-state sodium-chloride battery manufacturing plant, reinforcing Germany's push for innovative, secure and sustainable energy storage technologies. 

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