Calendar Date: January 2024. The final countdown to our full-scale battery production starts now.

Author: Troy Zerbe, Chief Operating Officer

Originally published: September 6th, 2023

Nanotech Energy’s Chief Operations Officer Troy Zerbe looks ahead at the final four-month schedule before full-scale battery production begins at our new Chico 2 manufacturing facility.

In the 18 months I’ve been with Nanotech Energy, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to work with a huge number of talented and dedicated colleagues, partners, contractors, and suppliers. Today, as we stand ready to take one of our company’s most significant steps forward, I need to say a very public ‘thank you’ to everyone involved in the set-up and organization of our new Chico 2 production facility.

For some time now, our investors, customers and suppliers have shown faith in our products, our processes, and our vision for a future built on graphene-powered batteries. That vision is now coming to life, and over the next four months I’d like to give you a play-by-play insight into the final stages of our Chico 2 build.

Chico 2 is near the Chico Municipal Airport and about 20 minutes away from our R&D base Chico 1. Unlike Chico 1, Chico 2 will be a full-scale 150MW production plant with a stated manufacturing capacity of 30,000 18650 cylindrical cells per day.

As an initial step, we took the original two buildings that made up the Chico 2 site and completely refurbished them, installing new floors, carpets, offices, and paintwork. At the start of August, the cement was ground and polished, and an ESD coating will soon be put down for the moisture barrier for the dry rooms. Equipment is also ordered and in transit. By October, all the dry rooms will be assembled, all the equipment will be on site, and we’ll have completed the electrical, water, and HVAC installations.

From there, a team of approximately 15 people will be reassigned to Chico 2 to set-up and debug the manufacturing equipment during October and November. Our first validation builds and site assessment tests should begin on December 1, 2023. 

At the same time, we’re working with a Chico-based HR company to help with the recruitment drive necessary to bring in the operators we need. We’ll also be launching a new ERP system with Oracle, a new quality management system with Rockwell, and a new manufacturing execution system (MES) also with Rockwell. By the time we’re up and running at the start of 2024, it’s going to be a sophisticated manufacturing set-up.

So it’s busy, naturally, but it’s also a hugely exciting time for all of us at Nanotech. That’s why we want to share what’s happening with you – our customers, investors, suppliers, and contractors. Our production schedule is starting to swell, and we’ll be fulfilling contracts from the turn of the year. If you’re reading this and would like to discuss the possibility of securing an order, please contact me on LinkedIn or email at tzerbe@nanotechenergy.com.

In the meantime, I’d like to reiterate my enormous gratitude to everyone involved – and I promise to keep you updated with every new milestone over the coming weeks and months. I can’t wait!