Canada’s RecycLiCo to build a battery recycling plant in Taiwan
Battery materials company RecycLiCo (formerly American Manganese) has entered a 50-50 joint venture with Zenith Chemical Corporation to build a battery recycling plant in Taiwan. The first facility, estimated to cost $25 mn, is to process 2,000 metric tons per year of lithium-ion waste.
The partners expect to convert the materials into valuable resources such as lithium-ion battery precursor cathode active material, lithium hydroxide monohydrate, and lithium carbonate.
It is the first commercial battery recycling plant to utilise RecycLiCo’s technology, and the joint venture says it would further combine Zenith’s expertise, resources, and novel technology. However, the latter will mostly bring existing land, infrastructure, and labour resources in Taiwan to the joint undertaking.
As for financing, both parties will contribute half of the required capital in three initial stages, with the balance being advanced as required to fund construction and start-up costs. Zenith will contribute in cash, while the Canadian RecycLiCo will receive a 10% interest in the joint venture in return for licensing its technology, with the balance (40%) of its stake in cash.
While RecycLiCo and Zenith add that “a leading battery materials company” has validated the RecycLiCo process and confirmed the quality of Zenith’s nickel cathode precursors and lithium chemical products, information on the recycling process to be applied at the plant is scarce. RecycLiCo claims minimal processing steps and up to 99% extraction of lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese in the notes to editors.
Moreover, the company patented a closed-loop hydrometallurgical process. The latter is also applied by companies such as Li-Cycle and BASF and usually involves aqueous chemistry to recover metals from ores, concentrates, and recycled or residual materials. In the case of batteries, it is usually ‘black mass’ that is being processed. RecycLiCo has made no statement concerning any black mass or origin of materials to be recycled.
Zenith, for its part, specialises in nickel-based chemicals, including nickel sulfate for lithium-ion batteries. The company has a shareholding partnership with Hanwa, a large Japanese distribution company dealing in lithium-ion battery-related materials.
Paul Hildebrand, Chairman of RecycLiCo, said, Zenith’s “deep technical expertise in chemical processing and established infrastructure” would enable his company “to move swiftly and efficiently toward production”.
James Fang, Chairman of Zenith Chemicals, added he looked forward to working closely with RecycLiCo to establish “the first commercial recycling plant in the world, based on RecycLiCo’s proprietary technology”.
Zenith and RecycLiCo have not published a timeline but signed warrants on shares and royalties over five years.
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