TORONTO — NEO Battery Materials Ltd. announced a series of commercial and strategic developments across its drone and defence battery business, including its first direct supply order from the Republic of Korea Army, a battery management system development order from a strategic drone collaborator and additional purchase orders from drone value chain companies in the United States, South Korea and Japan.
Per an Aug. 27 press release, NEO has received a direct purchase order for military-grade drone battery packs from a division of the Republic of Korea Army for field validation and use. This reportedly marks the first agreement to supply the ROK Army directly without a traditional procurement intermediary.
The company says it has also advanced its relationship with Assetta Inc. by securing a development order for battery management systems (BMS) supporting its drone platforms under a government procurement program. The scope reportedly spans state-of-charge indication, cell voltage monitoring and balancing, communications system integration and a range of undisclosed functions intended to differentiate from competing platforms.
NEO has also been contracted via battery cell and pack purchase orders by a U.S. drone components manufacturer, a South Korean unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) manufacturers, a Japanese standalone drone company and various Korean small-to-medium enterprises producing strike and ISR drones for defence and industrial applications.
“NEO is widening its drone battery business offerings to provide a true, one-stop energy solution from cell-to-pack-to-BMS,” said Spencer Huh, President & CEO of NEO. “This has translated into increased traction from Korean, Japanese, and American drone and drone components manufacturers. Across these engagements, two considerations are recurring: the ability to enhance performance of cells and packs given the constraints imposed by the customers’ systems, and the access to a robust supply source situated outside of adversarial jurisdictions.”