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market","north-american-recyclers-set-sights-on-european-market","article/north-american-recyclers-set-sights-on-european-market",{"_uid":547,"date":548,"tags":549,"editor":568,"content":578,"excerpt":911,"featured":51,"reporter":912,"_editable":916,"component":917,"seo_title":543,"categories":918,"visibility":925,"author_company":49,"featured_image":926,"seo_description":911,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":930,"formattedArticleDate":931},"d3c0b47a-febc-409d-b956-845e4553a195","2023-10-18 00:00",[550,553,556,559,562,565],{"slug":551,"name":552},"ascend-elements","Ascend Elements",{"slug":554,"name":555},"europe","Europe",{"slug":557,"name":558},"li-cycle","Li-Cycle",{"slug":560,"name":561},"north-america","North America",{"slug":563,"name":564},"redwood-materials","Redwood Materials",{"slug":566,"name":567},"site-visit","Site visit",[569],{"slug":570,"name":571,"content":572},"didi-bostock","Didi Bostock",{"job_title":573,"image":574,"bio":576,"linkedin":577},"Editor - Energy Transition & Economics",{"filename":575},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/2c5ca5c1a3/didi-bostock.jpeg","Didi is the Energy Transition & Economics Editor at Benchmark, covering a broad range of markets across the energy transition. His remit spans from downstream sectors such as BESS and EVs, through to midstream such as new technologies and battery production, to upstream critical minerals mining. He also leads on financial analysis across these supply chains, alongside in-depth policy analysis.\n","https://www.linkedin.com/in/didi-bostock-656342198/",{"type":579,"content":580},"doc",[581,598,619,632,645,658,671,684,689,698,705,710,715,720,725,738,743,748,753,758,769,774,779,784,789,794,799,820,825,830,843,848,853,858,863,868,873,878,883,896,901,906],{"type":582,"attrs":583,"content":584},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[585,588,596],{"text":586,"type":587},"Li-Cycle and Redwood Materials, both ","text",{"text":589,"type":587,"marks":590},"headquartered in North America",[591],{"type":592,"attrs":593},"link",{"href":594,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/the-companies-shaping-the-north-american-lithium-ion-recycling-ecosystem","url",{"text":597,"type":587},", have recently made moves into the European market as they look to tap into the demand generated by recent European legislation.",{"type":582,"attrs":599,"content":600},{"textAlign":49},[601,603,609,611,617],{"text":602,"type":587},"Last month, ",{"text":604,"type":587,"marks":605},"Li-Cycle opened its plant in Germany",[606],{"type":592,"attrs":607},{"href":608,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/the-bottleneck-in-the-industry-is-on-the-refining-capacity-qa-with-li-cycle-co-founder-tim-johnston",{"text":610,"type":587},", while ",{"text":612,"type":587,"marks":613},"Redwood",[614],{"type":592,"attrs":615},{"href":616,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/redwood-to-supply-us-made-cathode-to-panasonic-as-bidens-ira-boosts-supply-chain",{"text":618,"type":587}," said it would acquire Redux Recycling, a German recycler, for an undisclosed sum.",{"type":582,"attrs":620,"content":621},{"textAlign":49},[622,624,630],{"text":623,"type":587},"The deals come as the European Parliament adopted the proposal for the Critical Raw Materials Act last month, which calls for 15% of critical materials to be sourced through recycling by 2030. This is in addition to the ",{"text":625,"type":587,"marks":626},"EU’s New Batteries Regulation",[627],{"type":592,"attrs":628},{"href":629,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/can-the-eu-meet-its-proposed-battery-metals-recycling-targets",{"text":631,"type":587},", which mandates that batteries sold within the EU contain minimum levels of recycled materials.",{"type":582,"attrs":633,"content":634},{"textAlign":49},[635,637,643],{"text":636,"type":587},"This is a different approach to the US which has opted to encourage the growth of its battery supply chain through electric vehicle tax incentives that ",{"text":638,"type":587,"marks":639},"encourage the use of recycled materials",[640],{"type":592,"attrs":641},{"href":642,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/north-americas-recycling-capacity-set-to-overtake-europe-this-year",{"text":644,"type":587}," with no specific mandates relating to recycling.",{"type":582,"attrs":646,"content":647},{"textAlign":49},[648,650,656],{"text":649,"type":587},"“The IRA has no doubt led to increased investment in recycling operations in North America,” ",{"text":651,"type":587,"marks":652},"Sarah Colbourn",[653],{"type":592,"attrs":654},{"href":655,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/video/watch/analyst-insights-battery-recycling-in-north-america",{"text":657,"type":587},", an analyst at Benchmark, said. “But this hasn’t meant that Europe is falling behind totally – though it’s lacking similar financial incentives, the need to advance capacity is real there considering the Batteries Regulation targets.”",{"type":582,"attrs":659,"content":660},{"textAlign":49},[661,663,669],{"text":662,"type":587},"Both regions have ",{"text":664,"type":587,"marks":665},"recycling scrap pools",[666],{"type":592,"attrs":667},{"href":668,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/battery-production-scrap-to-be-main-source-of-recyclable-material-this-decade",{"text":670,"type":587}," of around nine gigawatt-hours which are expected to grow substantially as gigafactories come online and electric vehicles reach the end of their life.",{"type":582,"attrs":672,"content":673},{"textAlign":49},[674,676,682],{"text":675,"type":587},"Europe’s battery scrap pool is expected to grow at a CAGR of 40% between 2023 and 2030, according to ",{"text":677,"type":587,"marks":678},"Benchmark",[679],{"type":592,"attrs":680},{"href":681,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://www.benchmarkminerals.com/forecasts/recycling/reports",{"text":683,"type":587},". ",{"type":582,"attrs":685,"content":686},{"textAlign":49},[687],{"text":688,"type":587},"But Europe faces challenges. With the US offering generous incentives, it needs to reform its funding bodies to make finance more accessible and desirable. Industry is also calling for clarification on the classification of black mass to help stop the critical minerals contained within the material leaking out of the bloc and into Asia.",{"type":582,"attrs":690,"content":691},{"textAlign":49},[692],{"type":693,"attrs":694},"image",{"id":49,"alt":695,"src":696,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":697},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/a2cbf08034/bm-chart-screenshot-50.png",{},{"type":699,"attrs":700,"content":702},"heading",{"level":701,"textAlign":49},4,[703],{"text":704,"type":587},"Moving into Europe",{"type":582,"attrs":706,"content":707},{"textAlign":49},[708],{"text":709,"type":587},"Both Europe and North America are home to operational lithium ion battery recycling facilities. However, there are only two companies with operations in both regions: Li-Cycle and Redwood Materials.",{"type":582,"attrs":711,"content":712},{"textAlign":49},[713],{"text":714,"type":587},"Benchmark Source attended the opening of Li-Cycle’s latest ‘spoke’ facility which takes in waste batteries and processes them into black mass. Located in Germany, it is the company’s first facility to open outside of North America. The 20,000 square metre space is currently home to one of the company’s shredding lines which has the capacity to process 10,000 tonnes of waste batteries per year.",{"type":582,"attrs":716,"content":717},{"textAlign":49},[718],{"text":719,"type":587},"Able to take batteries of any format, the line stretches the length of the facility. Three tall shredding hoppers filled with a water-based solution  shred lithium ion batteries without the need for discharging them. The batteries are progressively shredded down until glittery black powder comes out at the end. This is the black mass that is then sent on to Li-Cycle’s centralised hub facilities to be hydrometallurgical processed into battery-grade chemicals.",{"type":582,"attrs":721,"content":722},{"textAlign":49},[723],{"text":724,"type":587},"A blocked off area of the German spoke is where a second line is being constructed and Li-Cycle has plans for a third which will bring the capacity up to 30,000 tonnes per year.",{"type":582,"attrs":726,"content":727},{"textAlign":49},[728,730,736],{"text":729,"type":587},"Li-Cycle plans to send the black mass produced by the German spoke to a central ‘hub’ facility in Portovesme, Italy where it will be converted into battery grade chemicals. This ",{"text":731,"type":587,"marks":732},"facility is being developed in conjunction with Glencore",[733],{"type":592,"attrs":734},{"href":735,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/glencore-and-li-cycle-plan-to-build-europes-largest-battery-recycling-hub-in-italy",{"text":737,"type":587},". The company is also developing a hub in Rochester, New York.",{"type":582,"attrs":739,"content":740},{"textAlign":49},[741],{"text":742,"type":587},"Redwood Materials operates an integrated facility in Nevada and has another planned in South Carolina. Both are designed to produce battery grade materials including cathode active material and copper anode foils.",{"type":582,"attrs":744,"content":745},{"textAlign":49},[746],{"text":747,"type":587},"The acquisition of Redux Recycling in Germany is Redwood’s first step into the European market and gives them access to a pre-processing facility. Redwood plans to develop hydrometallurgical operations similar to its US operations.",{"type":582,"attrs":749,"content":750},{"textAlign":49},[751],{"text":752,"type":587},"“In a perfect world. I think we want to replicate what we’re doing in the United States,” Jackson Switzer, Redwood’s vice president for business development, told Benchmark Source. “We want to learn and dive in and see what works and see what doesn’t work and appreciate the differences between the US and Europe. The Redux acquisition is a great way for us to learn by doing very quickly.”",{"type":582,"attrs":754,"content":755},{"textAlign":49},[756],{"text":757,"type":587},"Ascend Elements, headquartered in Massachusetts, has a 30,000 tonne per year pre-processing facility in Georgia, US and is planning a hydrometallurgical facility in Kentucky.",{"type":582,"attrs":759,"content":760},{"textAlign":49},[761,767],{"text":762,"type":587,"marks":763},"Mike O’Kronley, Ascend’s chief executive",[764],{"type":592,"attrs":765},{"href":766,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/this-level-of-investment-in-manufacturing-hasnt-happened-in-the-us-in-more-than-half-a-century-qa-with-ascend-elements-ceo-mike-okronley",{"text":768,"type":587},", told Benchmark Source that the company plans to move into Europe, too.",{"type":582,"attrs":770,"content":771},{"textAlign":49},[772],{"text":773,"type":587},"“We’re already bringing back and recycling materials in Europe,” he said. “I would expect that within the next several quarters […] we will be making an announcement about what we’re doing in Europe.”",{"type":699,"attrs":775,"content":776},{"level":701,"textAlign":49},[777],{"text":778,"type":587},"Funding differences ",{"type":582,"attrs":780,"content":781},{"textAlign":49},[782],{"text":783,"type":587},"Europe’s more regulatory approach to developing the battery supply chain means the pot of money available is smaller than that of the US.",{"type":582,"attrs":785,"content":786},{"textAlign":49},[787],{"text":788,"type":587},"“More money is needed from the EU for industrialisation [of battery recycling],” Aman Chitkara, Li-Cycle’s director of government relations for EMEA, told Benchmark Source. “New public finance focused on the scaling and industrialization of processing, refining, and recycling operations in the EU could provide a major boost to critical minerals security in the EU.”",{"type":582,"attrs":790,"content":791},{"textAlign":49},[792],{"text":793,"type":587},"Through the Inflation Reduction Act, the US bolstered the development of a domestic battery supply chain.",{"type":582,"attrs":795,"content":796},{"textAlign":49},[797],{"text":798,"type":587},"This has helped the recycling industry through improving surety of demand, increasing the size of the scrap pool, and significantly increasing the funding that can be accessed.",{"type":582,"attrs":800,"content":801},{"textAlign":49},[802,804,810,812,818],{"text":803,"type":587},"Further to catalysing investment, the ",{"text":805,"type":587,"marks":806},"US Department of Energy",[807],{"type":592,"attrs":808},{"href":809,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/to-me-what-matters-is-american-dominance-in-these-sectors-of-the-future-qa-with-the-does-jigar-shah",{"text":811,"type":587}," has significant funding at its disposal. It made a conditional commitment for a ",{"text":813,"type":587,"marks":814},"$2 billion loan to Redwood",[815],{"type":592,"attrs":816},{"href":817,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/2-billion-redwood-doe-loan-advances-us-cathode-production",{"text":819,"type":587}," and $375 million to Li-Cycle.",{"type":582,"attrs":821,"content":822},{"textAlign":49},[823],{"text":824,"type":587},"The EU has the Innovation Fund, which is funded by the EU’s emissions trading scheme which puts a cost on carbon. But Chitkara said accessing this is complicated in comparison to the DoE schemes in the US.",{"type":582,"attrs":826,"content":827},{"textAlign":49},[828],{"text":829,"type":587},"“Current EU incentive opportunities geared towards scale-up and industrialisation can be hard to access for growth companies such as Li-Cycle,” he said. “You need process reform.”",{"type":582,"attrs":831,"content":832},{"textAlign":49},[833,835,841],{"text":834,"type":587},"Li-Cycle, alongside a variety of other players in the battery supply chain including Northvolt and Albemarle, were ",{"text":836,"type":587,"marks":837},"co-signatories of a letter to the EU",[838],{"type":592,"attrs":839},{"href":840,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://www.transportenvironment.org/discover/expansion-of-the-eu-innovation-fund-needed-for-battery-supply-chain/",{"text":842,"type":587}," calling for an expansion of the Innovation Fund and the development of a European Critical Minerals Fund.",{"type":582,"attrs":844,"content":845},{"textAlign":49},[846],{"text":847,"type":587},"Switzer said that the regulations and policies coming in Europe will help “seed the localisation of supply chains” and emphasised that incentives should not be the basis of a business model.",{"type":582,"attrs":849,"content":850},{"textAlign":49},[851],{"text":852,"type":587},"“We’ve got to create a business that is competitive on a global basis irrespective of government subsidies, because eventually those will go away,” he said.",{"type":699,"attrs":854,"content":855},{"level":701,"textAlign":49},[856],{"text":857,"type":587},"Keeping black mass in Europe’s borders",{"type":582,"attrs":859,"content":860},{"textAlign":49},[861],{"text":862,"type":587},"Currently, it is often more economical for recyclers in Europe to shred used batteries and export the black mass to Asia according to Benchmark’s Recycling Cost Model.",{"type":582,"attrs":864,"content":865},{"textAlign":49},[866],{"text":867,"type":587},"Over 60% of the operating recycling facilities in Europe purely process batteries into black mass according to Benchmark’s Battery Recyclers Database. By contrast, just a third of Chinese recycling facilities are dedicated only to producing black mass.",{"type":582,"attrs":869,"content":870},{"textAlign":49},[871],{"text":872,"type":587},"For example, South Korea’s SungEel HiTech operates two shredding facilities in Europe with another three planned. It operates a hydrometallurgical facility, and has a second one planned, in South Korea with no European plans for such a facility.",{"type":582,"attrs":874,"content":875},{"textAlign":49},[876],{"text":877,"type":587},"A key way Europe could control the loss of valuable black mass is through characterising it as a hazardous waste and harmonising the waste codes that apply to it and waste batteries.",{"type":582,"attrs":879,"content":880},{"textAlign":49},[881],{"text":882,"type":587},"“Industry is calling for Europe to act faster in this space: there have been recent calls to hasten the introduction of waste codes for batteries and black mass, under the European List of Waste, as they set out in the Critical Raw Materials Act for 2024,” Colbourn said.",{"type":582,"attrs":884,"content":885},{"textAlign":49},[886,888,894],{"text":887,"type":587},"A ",{"text":889,"type":587,"marks":890},"joint letter",[891],{"type":592,"attrs":892},{"href":893,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":595},"https://www.transportenvironment.org/discover/europe-needs-to-act-over-black-mass-commission-told/",{"text":895,"type":587}," from Eurometaux, Recharge, Transport & Environment, and WWF says that recyclers in Europe are struggling to secure supplies of black mass.",{"type":582,"attrs":897,"content":898},{"textAlign":49},[899],{"text":900,"type":587},"“There are currently no restrictions on black mass exports, so our critical metals simply leave Europe unchecked,” the letter says. “China on the other hand, has banned the exports of black mass.”",{"type":582,"attrs":902,"content":903},{"textAlign":49},[904],{"text":905,"type":587},"Currently, there are multiple possible waste codes that can be applied to used lithium ion batteries and black mass, which Redwood’s Switzer said adds “a bunch of costs” when moving the material within Europe.",{"type":582,"attrs":907,"content":908},{"textAlign":49},[909],{"text":910,"type":587},"“It just adds a lot of administrative burden to a material that at the end of the day, once it is processed and refined has substantial value and is actually a product,” he said.","Li-Cycle and Redwood Materials, both headquartered in North America, have recently made moves into the European market as they look to tap into the demand generated by recent European legislation. Last month, Li-Cycle opened its plant in Germany, while Redwood said it would acquire Redux Recycling, a German recycler, for an undisclosed sum. The deals […]",[913],{"slug":570,"name":571,"content":914},{"job_title":573,"image":915,"bio":576,"linkedin":577},{"filename":575},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"d3c0b47a-febc-409d-b956-845e4553a195\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[919,922],{"slug":920,"name":921},"recycling","Recycling",{"slug":923,"name":924},"sustainability","Sustainability","private",{"id":49,"alt":695,"name":695,"focus":695,"title":695,"source":695,"filename":927,"copyright":695,"fieldtype":928,"meta_data":929,"is_external_url":51},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/98b1d8dd15/bm-2023-08-17-licycle-42.jpg","asset",{"alt":695,"title":695,"source":695,"copyright":695},"Oct 18, 2023","18th October 2023",[],[],1781280274026]