UK Battery Ecosystem Aids Gelion’s Success in Lithium-Sulfur Battery Development

Coordinated support from the UK battery ecosystem has been instrumental in enabling Gelion’s progression from early-stage lithium-sulfur (Li-S) research to commercially relevant sulfur-based battery technologies. This support has underpinned key technical milestones, strengthened the UK’s sovereign IP position in Li-S, and accelerated the translation of academic research into scalable industrial solutions suitable for electric vehicles, battery energy stationary storage (BESS), aerospace and defence.

In this success story, we use a timeline of activities to explore the role played by the Faraday Institution, the Battery Innovation Programme (and its predecessor the Faraday Battery Challenge), the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC), the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), and academic partners University of Oxford and the University of Nottingham in enabling this success. Its publication, in June 2026, coincides with the announcement of the signing of a collaboration agreement between Gelion, Nissan, and the University of Oxford, and the awarding of the CoRe-SoLiS project which was enabled thanks to £2.4 million funding from the Battery Innovation Programme, through the Department for Business and Trade, and delivered by Innovate UK.

This case study covers the period since the acquisition of OXLiD by Gelion in November 2023, and builds on a previous success story that tracked support for OXLiD from start up to its acquisition by Gelion.

Gelion leadership team.

Gelion’s technology development trajectory

OXLiD, now Gelion Europe Ltd, had established strong domestic R&D capability and links into the Faraday Institution’s SOLBAT and LiSTAR programmes and broader networks. Access to grant funding, facilities, talent, and collaboration opportunities have enabled Gelion to rapidly advance its technology and align it with real-world application requirements.

Support from across the UK battery ecosystem has helped Gelion to move beyond the traditional trade-offs that have historically constrained battery development. The current market is characterised by a choice between lower-cost, easier-to-manufacture chemistries such as lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and higher energy but more complex and supply chain-constrained systems such as lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC). Gelion is developing a sulfur-based cathode platform that addresses this challenge directly.

Today, Gelion’s Nano-Encapsulated Sulfur (NES™) platform is designed to deliver high energy, long cycle life and high power while retaining ultra-low cost and secure supply chains. By using sulfur – which is abundant and a waste product of the oil and gas sector – and enabling water-based cathode processing, the platform reduces reliance on scarce metals such as nickel and cobalt while simplifying production requirements. This translates to lower capital intensity, through reduced need for solvent recovery systems and dry room infrastructure as well as lower operating costs and improved environmental performance.

Importantly, the approach is designed for compatibility with existing lithium-ion manufacturing infrastructure. As a cathode innovation, NES™ can be integrated into current production lines and paired with established anode technologies, including graphite and silicon-graphite, avoiding the need for entirely new cell architectures or factory redesign. This provides a practical pathway to higher energy batteries without the delays and costs associated with building new manufacturing capacity.

This evolution reflects Gelion’s shift from early-stage Li-S research toward a commercially grounded sulfur platform focused on manufacturability, scalability and deployment. What began as an effort to safeguard UK Li-S IP has developed into a strategy centred on delivering high-energy, lower-cost batteries that can be produced using today’s industrial base.

Gelion’s trajectory illustrates the effectiveness of the UK’s battery innovation ecosystem in bridging fundamental research and commercialisation. The combined contributions of the Faraday Institution and its partners – spanning research funding, business mentoring, early-stage commercialisation support, academic collaboration, and industry engagement – have been central to this progress, enabling the translation of UK-developed IP into globally relevant energy storage solutions.

Gelion’s Head of Lithium-Sulfur, Dr Gareth Hartley (right), on a panel at the Faraday Institution Conference, September 2025.

Timeline

Blue – Gelion activity with a UK innovation ecosystem touchpoint

Red – Other Gelion activity

Case study published May 2026.