Media, page-1779

Incorporating black mass recycling into the proposed BSX nickel refinery is an effective and potentially profitable response to a constantly evolving green energy market. Altilium Metals, a UK startup planning to build a black mass recycling plant in Devon, has crunched some numbers as part of their due diligence.

Here are the key take aways-

· 11 million tons (worldwide) of lithium ion batteries predicted to require recycling by 2030

· Recycling spent batteries from 100,000 vehicles would yield £350 million of new materials

· Altilium says that lab tests show it can recover 95% of the useful materials

· Altilium estimates that by 2040 the EV industry could source 40% of its lithium from recycling

· Black mass recycling could save around 38% of carbon emissions from mining and refining

· The start up estimates that recycling black mass is 35% cheaper than mining and refining

· China currently accounts for 70% of the world’s black mass recycling capacity

· In Europe there is a lack of commercial scale recycling capacity

· Europe and the US do not want to be dependent on materials from China

· In the US, Redwood, Ascend Elements, Cirba Solutions and Li Cycle have black mass recycling ambitions

· In the EU, Belgian materials company Umicore can process 7000 tons of black mass annually

· EU and American black mass recycling start ups could benefit from a green energy subsidy war

· European and American manufacturers are scrambling to get in on the action

Christian Marston, Altilium’s chief technology officer and co-founder says “What we’re aiming for is full battery circularity. We think of EV batteries as concentrated ore.”

Altilium will begin processing about 100 tons of black mass next year, enough for 300 EVs. The start-up has future ambitions to process 50,000 tons of black mass which could potentially generate 100 to 200 high value jobs.

In addition to the Ta Khoa nickel resource, BSX has responded to this important component of future EV battery manufacturing with its proposed capacity to recycle black mass in its planned refinery. Further, the ability to recycle black mass could significantly extend the life of BSX’s future nickel refinery as, with 95% recovery rates, the metals can almost be recycled indefinitely.

Please note that specifics in relation to nickel recovery rates from black mass recycling are not detailed in the article.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/apr/08/shock-and-ore-uk-firms-race-to-get-in-on-electric-car-battery-recycling-act