Stora Enso and Shanshan Technology have entered into a partnership to jointly accelerate the development and industrialisation of sustainable battery materials with the construction of a demonstration line for lignin-based hard carbon battery anode materials.
The collaboration marks an important step in strengthening capabilities across the battery materials ecosystem. As part of the agreement, a demonstration line for hard carbon development will be established at Shanshan Technology’s facility in Ningbo, China, enabling faster technical development and industrial-scale validation globally. Together, the companies will be better positioned to respond to the rapidly growing interest in sodium-ion battery technologies and the increasing demand for sustainable anode materials.
By combining Stora Enso’s expertise in renewable materials and lignin-based innovation with Shanshan Technology’s extensive industrial capabilities and global position in the anode material business, the companies aim to accelerate product development, industrial readiness, and commercialisation of sustainable battery materials. The joint development focuses on lignin-based hard carbon materials derived from renewable wood-based feedstock, particularly relevant for sodium-ion batteries, where hard carbon is required as the anode material.
The partnership supports Stora Enso’s long-term ambition to establish large-scale production of hard carbon materials for battery anodes in Europe as sodium-ion battery technologies continue to gain momentum across a growing range of energy storage and mobility applications.
“Our partnership with Shanshan Technology is a significant step in advancing our sustainable battery materials business. By combining our expertise in renewable materials with Shanshan Technology’s industrial-scale anode material capabilities, we can accelerate development, strengthen our readiness for future scale-up, and support our long-term ambition to establish hard carbon production in Europe,” says Juuso Konttinen, SVP, Head of Growth, Biomaterials at Stora Enso.
