Dryve Battery Materials has been selected for a Canadian government program designed to help the Dartmouth-based company develop business opportunities in Sweden’s growing battery industry.
The company, which is developing a process for manufacturing cathode active materials, will participate in the Sweden Battery Value Chain Special Edition Canadian Technology Accelerator 2026-27, delivered by the Trade Commissioner Service of Global Affairs Canada.
The program will include virtual market preparation followed by an in-market program in Stockholm and the surrounding region in November. Dryve is expected to take part in site visits, business-to-business meetings and Battery Innovation Days 2026 as it seeks potential customers, partners and investors in Sweden and elsewhere in Europe.
In May, Dryve was spun off from Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Novonix Battery Technology Solutions under the leadership of Dryve CEO Dr. Chris Burns. Novonix took a 15 percent stake in Dryve and seeded the startup with US$2 million (C$2.7 million) in working capital.
“Selection for the Sweden Battery Value Chain CTA is an important step in Dryve’s international commercialization strategy,” said Burns in a statement released Thursday. “The program provides a valuable opportunity to engage directly with potential customers, partners and investors in Sweden and across the European battery ecosystem as we advance the commercialization of our dry, pCAM-free cathode technology.”
The company’s selection comes as it moves from pilot-scale production toward customer qualification and commercial applications. Earlier this month, Dryve said it shipped 100 kilograms of nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) cathode material to an American cell and materials company for evaluation. It described the shipment as its largest sample to date.
The 100-kilogram shipment is intended to allow the customer to evaluate Dryve’s material at a scale beyond typical laboratory samples, while providing the company with an opportunity to demonstrate its manufacturing process at larger volumes.
Dryve is commercializing a patented dry process that produces nickel-based cathode active materials without using precursor cathode active materials, known as pCAM, or conventional wet chemical processing.
The company operates an integrated pilot facility in Nova Scotia with an annual production capacity of 100 tonnes. It is currently sampling materials with cathode producers, battery manufacturers and automotive original equipment manufacturers while pursuing customer qualification, commercial partnerships and technology licensing opportunities.
Dryve said its technology has demonstrated performance competitive with commercially available cathode materials. Independent engineering work has indicated that the process could reduce capital and operating costs, manufacturing complexity and environmental impacts associated with conventional cathode production.
The company has patents granted in Japan, the United States, Europe and China, with recent patent allowances in South Korea.
Sweden has been developing a battery value chain as part of its clean-energy and industrial strategy. The Canada-Sweden Strategic Partnership Agreement identifies critical minerals, clean technologies, industrial cooperation and innovation as areas for collaboration.
The Canadian Technology Accelerator program was established in 2013 to help Canadian technology companies explore opportunities in international markets. Global Affairs Canada says more than 1,100 companies have participated in the program since its launch, reporting $842 million in new capital, more than $328 million in new revenue, and more than 1,100 new partnerships and 3,300 jobs.
