Vianode, established by Elkem as a new company and brand dedicated to advanced battery materials, wins award for unique business idea and use of technology and digitalisation to promote sustainability and the green transition.
“It is with great pleasure we have been informed that Vianode is the winner of the special award, Norway’s smartest industrial company for 2021. This is a recognition of the work that we do together with our partners every single day,” says Chris York, Global Vice President in Vianode.
The award is presented by The Federation of Norwegian Industries and the industrial group Siemens. The jury has been looking for companies in the start-up phase that have a unique business idea, that utilize technology and digitalisation to promote sustainability and the green transition.
“Through its research, Vianode has shown that they solve complex technological barriers and use sustainable raw materials in their production, and they are certainly a company that is worth following in the future,” says jury leader Torger Reve, professor emeritus and former headmaster at BI Norwegian Business School.
“It is great to see that the jury is impressed with how the company has managed to create a technological breakthrough for sustainable production of synthetic graphite as an anode material in lithium-ion batteries,” says Stian Madshus, vice president and general manager Europe in Vianode.
Very long service life and ambitious plans related to recycling makes this material sustainable and especially suitable for electric car batteries and for stationary energy storage in for example wind and solar parks.
2021 has been an eventful year for Elkem and Vianode. In April, Elkem successfully commissioned the industrial pilot for battery materials in Kristiansand, Norway, starting industrial scale pilot production for customers. In May, Vianode was established as a new company and brand dedicated to strategic growth opportunities in advanced battery materials. In August, Vianode secured an additional lease in Herøya to enhance its industrial production entrance into material supply for EV batteries.
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