An Australian company has announced a bold plan to build Australia's first "gigafactory" in Darwin, producing custom-made lithium-ion batteries for large-scale energy storage.
Energy Renaissance said, if it were to go ahead, the huge manufacturing plant would supply commercial customers in telecommunications, defence and government sectors.
"Our focus is to build the world's best batteries for hot and humid climates," said Brian Craighead, the managing director of the company.
Energy Renaissance plans to use patented technology from US company 24M to build batteries that can withstand harsher conditions.
The Northern Territory Government confirmed it was in talks with the company about the facility, to be called Renaissance One, which it estimates could create dozens of jobs at first, and hundreds in the long term.
But a statement from a spokesman for the Chief Minister noted "Cabinet is yet to consider their proposals".
Gigafactory is a term for factories that can produce gigawatts of battery storage.
