Australia’s Talga Group said on Thursday its flagship battery anode product, Talnode-C, is the greenest graphite anode in the world, Kallanish reports.

The announcement comes with the completion of the life cycle assessment (LCA) of its planned lithium-ion battery anode production in Sweden, conducted by Hitachi ABB Power Grids. The assessment results show the product emits 96% less greenhouse gas than those produced in China, which is equivalent to a reduction of around 2.9 million tonnes of CO2 per million EVs produced, the company said on Thursday.

Emissions from Chinese synthetic graphite anode production stands at roughly 34 kilograms of CO2 equivalent (kgCO2e), compared to 1.477 kg CO2e from Talnode-C. Talga believes there’s still scope for further emission cuts on its product, given 86% of the production emissions comes from external suppliers. Further optimisation through strategic procurement processes should enable a greater carbon footprint, the firm believes.

The huge cradle-to-gate green credentials of Talga’s planned anode production in Sweden are attributed to a unique high-yield graphite ore, innovative anode process and use of renewable energy. The proximity of the operations to customers and availability of low-carbon transport such as electric trains, also enable further mine-to-customer environmental advantages past the factory gate, the company adds.

Talga is currently in talks with 11 automotive companies, among 48 battery customer engagements, each testing and qualifying its anode products. The company is highly supportive of the EU’s proposed regulation on batteries, including the 2026 introduction of a passport for them, subjecting battery materials imported into the EU to tariffs based on environmental credentials.

“This high quality Hitachi LCA confirms the world-leading low emissions profile of our flagship Li-ion battery anode product and highlights the importance of the Vittangi anode project to European decarbonisation,” comments Talga’s managing director Mark Thompson.

The company plans to produce 19,000 tonnes/year of coated anodes. Mining activities are set to start in 2023 and anode production to follow in 2024. Talga also intends to expand production capacity by 85,000 t/y with the Niska project expansion, targeting 2025-2026 production.