Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX), Houston's largest publicly traded company, recently made new investments into firms in lithium-ion battery technology and advanced analytics software.
Phillips 66 announced Aug. 9 that it had agreed to take a 16% stake in Novonix Ltd., a Brisbane, Australia-based battery materials and technology company. Phillips 66 will subscribe for approximately 77.96 million Novonix shares for a total purchase price of $150 million.
The investment into Novonix is driven by Phillips 66's Emerging Energy organization and will support the development of domestic supply chains for sales into the U.S. electric vehicle and energy storage markets, the firm said. Novonix has its anode materials business based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and the firm aims to increase production capacity to 10,000 metric tons of synthetic graphite per year by 2023. With the Phillips 66 investment, Novonix aims to expand capacity by an additional 30,000 metric tons annually.
"This strategic investment enables Phillips 66 to directly support the development of the U.S. battery supply chain," said Greg Garland, chairman and CEO of Phillips 66. "It advances our commitment to pursue lower-carbon solutions while leveraging our leadership position and expertise in the specialty coke market and supporting Novonix's emerging position in U.S.-based anode production."
Phillips 66 will nominate a director to the Novovix board in conjunction with the investment. The deal is subject to approval by Novonix shareholders.
Last week, Phillips 66 announced a separate investment into Seeq. The Seattle-based firm develops advanced analytics software for process manufacturing data, including applications for data visualization and modeling, asset monitoring and real-time collaboration. Financial terms of the investment were not disclosed.
Phillips 66's investment into Seeq is the company's first investment through its Digital Ventures organization, part of the firm's AdvantEdge66 program aimed at fostering digital transformation and innovation. The Phillips 66 investment is through Denver-based venture capital firm Altira Group, which counts Seeq as a portfolio company.
"Data can yield incredible value and insights when properly gathered and refined through advanced analytics," said Zhanna Golodryga, senior vice president and chief digital and administrative officer at Phillips 66. "That’s why it’s important for us to collaborate with companies to advance innovation in the digital and analytics spaces. This investment provides a pathway for us to help Seeq grow and continue to improve its products, which we believe will be beneficial for our digital transformation journey."
With 2020 revenue of $65.49 billion, Phillips 66 is the largest publicly traded company headquartered in the Houston metro region.
