Perth-based home battery market newcomer Magellan Power has been named as one of three Western Australian businesses to be awarded a total of $1.7 million in state government funding towards five projects designed to help grow the state’s battery manufacturing sector.
The funding, from WA Labor’s Local Battery Manufacturing Program, will help the three companies – including Adarsh Investments and ProtoLab Manufacturing – to develop and test prototypes, buy advanced equipment, and “significantly expand” their production capacity.
First announced in November of last year, the Local Battery Manufacturing Program will provide up to $30 million in grants and $20 million in low-interest loans to support the local manufacture of residential, commercial and industrial batteries and battery components – and bolster local supply chains.
Magellan, which was had its start back in 1991 designing and supplying uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems has since branched into energy storage, including the local manufacture and recycling of mostly commercial, industrial and community-scale, or stand-alone, battery energy storage systems.
In May of 2025 Magellan launched its first residential energy storage offering, Karri, just ahead of the July 2025 launch of the federal government’s Cheaper Home Batteries scheme.
There are no details on the five projects that will share in the funding, but in the case of Magellan, the company has several irons in the fire. It has been gearing up to manufacture the Karri battery, locally, and also aims to start production of modular community batteries that range between 100 kW to 1 MW.
Magellan is also in the process of establishing a new 15,000-square-metre headquarters at Trident Estate, Hope Valley, in Perth, which began construction last year.
Adarsh Investments is a manufacturer, fabricator and importer of component parts with – its website says – “a strong history of designing and manufacturing equipment and parts for the renewable energy industry.”
Protolab, meanwhile, describes itself as an electronics manufacturing company specialising in circuit board assembly and small-to-medium production runs.
“The Local Battery Manufacturing Program is about building local manufacturing capability and keeping more value in our state,” said Amber-Jade Sanderson, state minister for energy and decarbonisation.
“These projects will support the development of innovative battery technologies, increase production capacity, and help businesses manufacture components that would otherwise be sourced from interstate or overseas.
“By supporting local battery manufacturing, we’re helping build resilient supply chains, creating highly skilled jobs, and supporting Australia’s transition to a cleaner energy future.”
The program will now reopen for applications. Funding is available through two separate streams – the Production-Ready Stream, which provides up to $100,000 in matched funding to businesses for projects in three categories of pre-production activities; and the Production Scale-Up Stream, which provides up to $5 million in matched funding to existing battery manufacturers for projects that scale-up their operations.
More information about the Local Battery Manufacturing Program can be found here.
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