Celgard Enters into Exclusive Joint Development Agreement for High-Voltage Battery Separator Technology with Morrow for LNMO Battery Cell Production at European Gigafactory

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Nov. 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Celgard, LLC (Celgard), a subsidiary of Polypore International, LP, is pleased to announce it has entered into a multi-year joint development agreement with Morrow Batteries AS (Morrow). Celgard will work with Morrow to develop, test, and commercialize next generation dry-process battery separators that will be used in Morrow high-voltage battery cells with lithium nickel manganese oxide (LNMO) cathode material for electric vehicle (EV) and energy storage system (ESS) applications.

John Zhang, chief technology officer and chief scientific officer of Polypore International and Rahul Fotedar, chief technology officer of Morrow, meet in Norway to begin technology discussions between the two companies to further advance electric vehicle battery technology in Europe. Celgard® dry-process coated and uncoated microporous membranes are used as separators in various lithium-ion batteries used primarily in electric drive vehicles (EDV) and energy storage systems (ESS).

While separator development activities are already underway between the two companies, commercial production will begin at Morrow's battery cell Gigafactory at Eyde Energy Park in Arendal, Norway, in 2024. Under the terms of the agreement, Morrow will exclusively use Celgard's proprietary dry-process membrane separators, developed under the agreement, in high-voltage batteries produced at its Gigafactory. Morrow has committed to undisclosed annual purchase volumes.

"For over half a century Celgard has been at the forefront of membrane technology, we are very excited to join forces with them to commercialize separators for Morrow's next generation high-voltage batteries.

The partnership with Celgard provides a framework to speed up the development of our LNMO-based products and it is a big step towards Morrow's goal of being a global leader in cost and sustainability," said Rahul Fotedar, chief technology officer of Morrow.

Additionally, Lie Shi, Asahi Kasei global head of separator business development and executive vice president of Polypore, added the following: "We are excited to partner with Morrow to develop and showcase Celgard® next generation membrane separators for high-voltage battery cells manufactured at their battery Gigafactory and we look forward to further advancing electric vehicle technology with Morrow in Europe."

Celgard specializes in solvent-free, coated and uncoated, dry-process microporous membranes used as separators that are a major component of lithium-ion batteries. Celgard's battery separator technology is important to the performance of lithium-ion batteries for electric drive vehicles, energy storage systems and other applications.

Celgard, LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Polypore International, LP, an Asahi Kasei Company.

Polypore is a global company with facilities in nine countries specializing in microporous membranes used in electric and nonelectric vehicles, energy storage systems and specialty applications. Visit www.celgard.com and www.polypore.com.

Morrow Batteries AS (Morrow) delivers cost-effective and sustainable batteries to build decarbonized and resilient energy systems worldwide and enable the electric drive for all. Their next-generation LNMO (cathode material) batteries will replace cobalt, reduce nickel and lithium, and maximize the use of clean and abundant manganese. Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Arendal, the industrial scale-up now counts 100+ battery specialists across four offices internationally. Learn more at morrowbatteries.com and @MorrowBatteries on LinkedIn.