eLumina has officially opened Australia’s first factory which will be capable of producing both community lithium batteries and EV chargers, with the first model set to come off the production line in 2025.
The new AU20 million Manufacturing and Development Centre on the Gold Coast will strengthen Australia’s energy storage sector and help meet soaring global demand for batteries, with the factory set to produce 300 batteries and EV chargers a year and support up to 300 jobs on the Gold Coast.
eLumina is an Australian-owned company manufacturing lithium battery energy storage systems and battery integrated electric vehicle chargers. The company offers a wide range of battery energy storage systems in various capacities to cater to a range of requirements in industrial and commercial settings.
“We are extremely proud to officially open our factory here in Yatala on the Gold Coast,” said eLumina CEO Lisa Marsh. “We are ambitious to back 300 highly technical and sought-after jobs and we’re proud to partner with TAFE Queensland to support the training and pathways into these jobs.”
“Queensland, particularly on the Gold Coast is emerging as a tech hotspot and now also a manufacturing hub,” said Tech Council of Australia CEO Damian Kassabgi. “Our goal is to have 1.2 million tech workers in Australia by 2030 and we’re proud to partner with Australian organisations like eLumina whose jobs are supporting the renewable energy sector.”
“We’re proud to partner with eLumina and support them with their mission of securing a sustainable energy future for Australians and supporting Australia becoming a global leader in this sector,” said Smart Energy Council CEO John Grimes. “What the team at eLumina have done is truly innovative and applying cutting-edge practices to be the first in the country to manufacture community lithium batteries and EV chargers.”
A key challenge is connectivity across Australia, particularly in regional and rural areas. eLumina’s partnership with Addelec is supporting the deployment of their battery-integrated EV chargers with a focus on regional connectivity.
“When we look globally, especially at places like Europe with a high uptake of EV’s, they’re navigating smaller and more densely populated areas,” said Addelec GM Chris McPherson. “When we zoom out to the sheer size of Australia, we need to take a different approach. Considering existing power challenges across Australia, and in turn we hope to see an uptake in EV users across Australia.
eLumina now have their sights set on manufacturing of these batteries looking to the future of manufacturing in Queensland.
“Our goal is for our next factory to be three times the size with the potential to employ up to 300 people directly and support many more,” said Marsh. “Our factory diversifies Australia’s manufacturing industry, building economic resilience and contributing to energy sovereignty and strengthening a ‘Gold Coast Made’ economy. We’re proud to be contributing to Australia’s energy future through pushing the dial forward on battery storage to secure Australia’s energy future and support the transition to net-zero.”
