Redflow NEWS & EVENTS, page-1620

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7.21am

Battery maker charged up by PM’s clean tech pledge

By Mike Foley and Shane Wright

Australian companies say Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s plan to sink billions of dollars into clean energy, batteries and critical minerals would give them a fighting chance to compete internationally, even as a senior economist warns the government’s “manufacturing fetishism” will leave the country poorer.

The Albanese government has pledged a big budget “future made in Australia” scheme that, in stark contrast to the former Morrison government’s gas-fired recovery from the COVID-19 economic downturn, will focus on low-emissions technologies such as batteries and critical minerals.

Redflow chief executive Tim Harris said the company was excited by the possibility of making batteries in Australia.Credit: Olive + Maeve

ASX-listed company Redflow developed its battery technology in Australia but built its manufacturing facility in Thailand, where labour and operating costs are lower.

It produces zinc-based batteries made with recycled materials that provide longer duration storage compared to popular lithium-ion batteries.

Redflow chief executive Tim Harris said government support was needed to reverse the trend of Australian technology feeding offshore manufacturing.