Graphene firm snapped up by Versarien

VERSARIEN, the materials manufacturing business which has a base in Liverpool, has agreed to buy a majority stake in a Manchester graphene business.

It is buying 85% of 2-DTech from the University of Manchester for £440,000.

The company is producing graphene, the super-light, super-strong material discovered by Manchester’s Nobel prize winning scientists Professors Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov.

Versarien said the 2-DTech technology will lead to a “significant enhancement” of its product range, “and enabling the company to apply its experience and expertise to commercialising the considerable market opportunities for graphene in the UK”.

The company develops advanced porous metals for thermal management – which includes heat exchange and energy storage. Its head office is in Cinderford, Gloucestershire, but it has a research facility at the Liverpool Science Park Innovation Centre.

Chief executive Neill Ricketts said: “The acquisition of 2-DTech coupled with the planned collaboration agreements with The University of Manchester, the established home of graphene, marks a significant opportunity for Versarien to progress its product range with highly complementary technologies.

“Versarien is already manufacturing over 37 tonnes per year of complex powder at its Total Carbide plant and combining this know-how with 2-DTech’s expertise, research facilities, and rights to intellectual property makes the early commercialisation of graphene related products far more likely in the near term on an industrial scale.”