Critical Resources retains 75 per cent capacity after 780 hours of solid-state battery testing
Critical Resources achieved a significant engineering milestone by keeping 75 per cent of initial capacity over 780 hours. A separate announcement reported St Barbara securing $410 million from asset sales.
Critical Resources, an ASX-listed mining and technology company, completed a month-long electrochemical test for its solid-state battery program on September 10, 2026. The hand-assembled test cell utilized the company's solvent-free Dry Supersonic Deposition (DSD) manufacturing process at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology. Operating at a standard rate of 0.2C, which involves a five-hour charge and discharge cycle, the device maintained a specific capacity of 145 milliamp hours per gram. After 780 total hours of cycling, equivalent to 65 full cycles, the cell retained 75 per cent of its initial capacity while keeping voltage between 3.4 and 3.5 volts.
St Barbara also made market-moving headlines by selling its stake in the New Simberi gold project in Papua New Guinea for $410 million. The asset was sold to Lingbao Gold Group, alongside a $43 million repayment for construction capital. Completion is targeted for the March quarter of 2027, pending regulatory and shareholder approvals. This transaction will leave St Barbara with approximately $880 million in cash and no debt. Despite broader market conditions, the company reported gains today, stating it intends to focus on its 15-Mile Processing Hub project in Canada where recent upgrades raised contained gold potential to 2.5 million ounces.
