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It will continue operations through the Chapter 11 restructuring process. ",[619],{"type":603,"attrs":620},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":622,"content":624},{"textAlign":623},"left",[625,630,639],{"text":626,"type":600,"marks":627},"The company faced headwinds from a slowdown in the ",[628],{"type":603,"attrs":629},{"color":547},{"text":631,"type":600,"marks":632},"US electric vehicle market",[633,637],{"type":608,"attrs":634},{"href":635,"uuid":636,"anchor":49,"target":612,"linktype":613},"/article/us-ev-demand-shift-and-bess-growth-who-deployed-the-most-batteries-in-2025-","efc32e74-520d-4632-b92b-53006fecdeef",{"type":603,"attrs":638},{"color":547},{"text":640,"type":600,"marks":641},", alongside the withdrawal of the unspent portion of its $316 million grant the US Department of Energy (DOE) for its Kentucky facility. ",[642],{"type":603,"attrs":643},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":645,"content":646},{"textAlign":623},[647,652,661,666,675],{"text":648,"type":600,"marks":649},"This marks the second bankruptcy at a major US ",[650],{"type":603,"attrs":651},{"color":547},{"text":653,"type":600,"marks":654},"battery recycler",[655,659],{"type":608,"attrs":656},{"href":657,"uuid":658,"anchor":49,"target":612,"linktype":613},"/videos/what-are-the-recent-global-trends-for-the-recycling-industry","143d86b7-e6fc-4330-91a9-1219ccb41f56",{"type":603,"attrs":660},{"color":547},{"text":662,"type":600,"marks":663},", following ",[664],{"type":603,"attrs":665},{"color":547},{"text":667,"type":600,"marks":668},"Li-Cycle’s",[669,673],{"type":608,"attrs":670},{"href":671,"uuid":672,"anchor":49,"target":612,"linktype":613},"/article/the-bottleneck-in-the-industry-is-on-the-refining-capacity-qa-with-li-cycle-co-founder-tim-johnston","935fbe25-803c-42fc-980f-f3a6aa0ec3b2",{"type":603,"attrs":674},{"color":547},{"text":676,"type":600,"marks":677}," collapse in May 2025, underscoring increasing financial stress across the sector. ",[678],{"type":603,"attrs":679},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":681,"content":682},{"textAlign":623},[683],{"text":684,"type":600,"marks":685},"Today, many North American recycling companies remain small- to mid-sized startups operating in a structurally challenging environment characterised by overseas reliance, limited feedstock availability, high capital intensity, and dependence on government support. As the industry develops, further consolidation and financial challenges could well become more common. ",[686],{"type":603,"attrs":687},{"color":547},{"type":689,"attrs":690,"content":692},"heading",{"level":691,"textAlign":623},2,[693,700],{"text":694,"type":600,"marks":695},"Key challenges in the US recycling market",[696,698],{"type":603,"attrs":697},{"color":547},{"type":699},"bold",{"text":701,"type":600,"marks":702}," ",[703],{"type":603,"attrs":704},{"color":547},{"type":689,"attrs":706,"content":708},{"level":707,"textAlign":623},3,[709,715],{"text":710,"type":600,"marks":711},"Low scrap volumes and shifting chemistry landscape",[712,714],{"type":603,"attrs":713},{"color":547},{"type":699},{"text":701,"type":600,"marks":716},[717],{"type":603,"attrs":718},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":720,"content":721},{"textAlign":623},[722],{"text":723,"type":600,"marks":724},"Since 2025, US EV market growth has underperformed expectations due to policy shifts, such as the removal of the federal tax credits on EVs, resulting in repeated suspensions and cancellations of battery production projects. This has constrained upstream battery output growth and intensified competition amongst recyclers for limited production scrap feedstock, placing pressure on utilisation rates and thus margins. ",[725],{"type":603,"attrs":726},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":728,"content":729},{"textAlign":623},[730,735,744,749,758],{"text":731,"type":600,"marks":732},"At the same time, the rapid expansion of the battery energy stationary storage (BESS) market alongside the shift from ",[733],{"type":603,"attrs":734},{"color":547},{"text":736,"type":600,"marks":737},"NCM to LFP chemistry",[738,742],{"type":608,"attrs":739},{"href":740,"uuid":741,"anchor":49,"target":612,"linktype":613},"/article/lges-signs-4-3-billion-bess-cell-supply-deal-with-tesla","c9e36cab-5f2c-4a05-9341-1aad24c0277d",{"type":603,"attrs":743},{"color":547},{"text":745,"type":600,"marks":746}," is reshaping the traditional North American recycling landscape. This transition is forcing recyclers to adapt their business models to changing feedstock composition and end-market demand. For example, Redwood Materials has increased its focus on battery second-life applications, repositioning itself more directly within the ",[747],{"type":603,"attrs":748},{"color":547},{"text":750,"type":600,"marks":751},"BESS value chain",[752,756],{"type":608,"attrs":753},{"href":754,"uuid":755,"anchor":49,"target":612,"linktype":613},"/article/us-bess-cell-demand-outstripping-north-american-production-until-2028-despite-tariffs","e10ddd56-09be-471c-ab8b-7f1503670661",{"type":603,"attrs":757},{"color":547},{"text":759,"type":600,"marks":760},". ",[761],{"type":603,"attrs":762},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":764,"content":765},{"textAlign":623},[766],{"text":767,"type":600,"marks":768},"Maintaining consistent access to feedstock remains a central factor in recycler resilience. Greater integration with upstream and downstream segments can help mitigate volatility and strengthen operational stability. ",[769],{"type":603,"attrs":770},{"color":547},{"type":772,"attrs":773},"blok",{"id":774,"body":775},"6a16ce63-dd2a-42be-8161-21e4f3ea3941",[776],{"id":777,"_uid":778,"type":779,"component":780,"fixed_height":547,"use_fixed_height":50,"fixed_height_mobile":547,"fixed_height_tablet":547},"28871648","i-389a22bf-1fc1-4228-bea9-6231cebe886f","visualisation","ContentFlourish",{"type":689,"attrs":782,"content":783},{"level":707,"textAlign":623},[784,790],{"text":785,"type":600,"marks":786},"Policy uncertainty and declining DOE funding",[787,789],{"type":603,"attrs":788},{"color":547},{"type":699},{"text":701,"type":600,"marks":791},[792],{"type":603,"attrs":793},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":795,"content":796},{"textAlign":623},[797],{"text":798,"type":600,"marks":799},"Many US recyclers have historically depended on DOE funding to support expansion projects. However, increasing policy uncertainty and funding cancellations have forced companies to delay or pause capacity growth plans and seek alternative financing sources, such as private investment. This has weakened long-term visibility and increased execution risk in an already capital-intensive industry. ",[800],{"type":603,"attrs":801},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":803,"content":804},{"textAlign":623},[805,810],{"text":806,"type":600,"marks":807},"While policy support, especially DOE funding in the US, has been a major catalyst for industry growth, heavy reliance on public funding creates structural vulnerability and should not be depended upon to create a viable business model.",[808],{"type":603,"attrs":809},{"color":547},{"text":701,"type":600,"marks":811},[812],{"type":603,"attrs":813},{"color":814},"#D13438",{"type":689,"attrs":816,"content":817},{"level":707,"textAlign":623},[818,824],{"text":819,"type":600,"marks":820},"Technology complexity with rising commercialisation costs",[821,823],{"type":603,"attrs":822},{"color":547},{"type":699},{"text":701,"type":600,"marks":825},[826],{"type":603,"attrs":827},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":829,"content":830},{"textAlign":623},[831],{"text":832,"type":600,"marks":833},"The complexity of technological hurdles in battery recycling, especially black mass refining, together with escalating commercialisation costs, has often been underestimated, placing increasing pressure on US recyclers. This has led several developers to revisit their original process routes to improve economics and simplify operations. ",[834],{"type":603,"attrs":835},{"color":547},{"type":595,"attrs":837,"content":838},{"textAlign":623},[839],{"text":840,"type":600,"marks":841},"Ascend Elements, for example, shifted from earlier Hydro-to-Cathode plans towards lithium carbonate production to streamline processing and enhance project viability. Similarly, Li-Cycle was forced to restructure its hub-based hydrometallurgical model, from chemical production to lithium and MHP production, amid cost overruns and scalability challenges, but ultimately failed to execute its strategy and entered bankruptcy.",[842],{"type":603,"attrs":843},{"color":547},"In April 2026, Ascend Elements filed for bankruptcy, citing “insurmountable” financial challenges despite having raised over USD 1.1 billion. It will continue operations through the Chapter 11 restructuring process. \n\nThe company faced headwinds from a slowdown in the US electric vehicle market, alongside the withdrawal of the unspent portion of its $316 million grant the US Department of Energy (DOE) for its Kentucky facility. \n\nThis marks the second bankruptcy at a major US battery recycler, following Li-Cycle’s collapse in May 2025, underscoring increasing financial stress across the sector. ",[846,849,859],{"slug":544,"name":543,"content":847},{"job_title":557,"image":848,"bio":548,"linkedin":555,"markets_covered":558},{"filename":552},{"slug":850,"name":851,"content":852},"frederick-bloomfield","Frederick Bloomfield",{"job_title":853,"image":854,"bio":856,"linkedin":857,"markets_covered":858},"Senior Analyst",{"filename":855},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/f55b7d4d79/freddie-bloomfield.jpeg","Frederick is a Senior Analyst at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence researching battery materials. His main areas of focus are lithium and battery recycling markets in Europe, North America and Asia. Before joining Benchmark, Frederick received his Master's degree in Green Chemistry at Imperial College London. With a particular interest in black mass trading, Frederick regularly speaks with players across the global battery recycling market, where he has gained extensive knowledge of trade flows, prices and policy on top of information on the wider recycling value chain, such as gate fees, tolling fees and the price of battery scrap and other recycled intermediates.","https://www.linkedin.com/in/frederick-bloomfield/","Black mass, lithium, nickel",{"slug":860,"name":861,"content":862},"beatrice-browning","Beatrice Browning",{"job_title":863,"image":864,"bio":866,"linkedin":867,"markets_covered":868},"Battery Recycling Technology Lead",{"filename":865},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/3035x3794/a96e9c1415/beatrice-browning-2024-2.jpg","Beatrice is the Battery Recycling Technology Lead at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, who has been working in the lithium ion battery recycling space for 6 years. She has been involved with Benchmark's recycling forecast since March 2022, tracking regional advancements in battery recycling infrastructure, technologies, and policy frameworks to build up a global understanding of the lithium-ion battery recycling market. She completed her PhD in battery recycling in March 2024, which has given her an in-depth technical understanding of lithium-ion battery recycling techniques.","https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-beatrice-browning-20940b78/","Recycling","article",[871],{"slug":872,"name":868},"recycling","private",{"id":49,"alt":49,"name":547,"focus":49,"title":49,"source":49,"filename":547,"copyright":49,"fieldtype":553,"meta_data":875},{},{"id":877,"alt":547,"name":547,"focus":547,"title":547,"source":547,"filename":878,"copyright":547,"fieldtype":553,"meta_data":879,"is_external_url":50},129065133139506,"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/93edcc0388/bm-ascend-elements-recycling.jpg",{},"In April 2026, Ascend Elements filed for bankruptcy, citing “insurmountable” financial challenges despite having raised over USD 1.1 billion. It will continue operations through the Chapter 11 restructuring process. ","May 07, 2026",{"id":883,"uuid":884,"name":885,"slug":886,"full_slug":887,"content":888},156672070107659,"6d4e9c3d-6c06-4df8-9ad8-36642e31348a","Trafigura signs $1.1 billion offtake agreement with Nth Cycle for recycled lithium, nickel","trafigura-signs-1-1-billion-offtake-agreement-with-nth-cycle-for-recycled-lithium-nickel","article/trafigura-signs-1-1-billion-offtake-agreement-with-nth-cycle-for-recycled-lithium-nickel",{"_uid":889,"date":890,"tags":891,"editor":901,"content":911,"excerpt":978,"featured":51,"reporter":979,"component":869,"seo_title":983,"categories":984,"visibility":873,"data_vis_image":993,"featured_image":995,"seo_description":999,"formattedDate":1000},"470e2ad3-7260-45be-ac1d-5b606d1c9720","2026-03-19 00:00",[892,895,897,898],{"slug":893,"name":894},"trafigura","Trafigura",{"slug":896,"name":373},"black-mass",{"slug":573,"name":574},{"slug":899,"name":900},"nth-cycle","Nth Cycle",[902],{"slug":903,"name":904,"content":905},"benjamin-roche","Benjamin Roche",{"job_title":906,"image":907,"bio":909,"linkedin":910},"Editor – Energy Transition Supply Chains",{"filename":908},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/800x800/66d6674fb8/benjamin-roche.png","Benjamin is Benchmark's Editor for Energy Transition Supply Chains, covering both upstream products like critical minerals and downstream products including energy storage systems and electric vehicles. He has previous experience covering trade flows, tariffs and the effects of geopolitics on supply chains.","https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjaminrochecontent/",{"type":592,"content":912},[913,935,940,954,961,966,971],{"type":595,"attrs":914,"content":915},{"textAlign":49},[916,918,926,928,933],{"text":917,"type":600},"Critical metals refining company Nth Cycle has signed a $1.1 billion, 10-year agreement with Trafigura to provide 2,000 tonnes of contained nickel in MHP and 1,500 tonnes of lithium carbonate refined from 12,000 tonnes of ",{"text":919,"type":600,"marks":920},"black mass",[921],{"type":608,"attrs":922},{"href":923,"uuid":924,"anchor":49,"target":925,"linktype":613},"/article/china-reduces-import-tariffs-for-recycled-black-mass","b30cf2f8-8f83-40e9-8d1f-5775ac7c0b60","_blank",{"text":927,"type":600},". It is the largest multi-metal commercial agreement between a ",{"text":929,"type":600,"marks":930},"recycled feedstock",[931],{"type":608,"attrs":932},{"href":657,"uuid":658,"anchor":49,"target":925,"linktype":613},{"text":934,"type":600}," supplier and refiner of its kind.",{"type":595,"attrs":936,"content":937},{"textAlign":49},[938],{"text":939,"type":600},"Nth Cycle is one of the only refiners in US with black mass refining capability for the production of lithium carbonate and MHP. Its Farfield, Ohio recycling plant has an operational capacity of over 3,000 tonnes per year of black mass, with plans to expand capacity in South Carolina and the Netherlands by installing its systems in existing refining facilities.",{"type":595,"attrs":941,"content":942},{"textAlign":49},[943,945,952],{"text":944,"type":600},"Trafigura is actively seeking products ",{"text":946,"type":600,"marks":947},"produced from recycling",[948],{"type":608,"attrs":949},{"href":950,"uuid":951,"anchor":49,"target":925,"linktype":613},"/videos/panel-discussion-recycling-solutions-to-build-a-circular-battery-economy","4462e2b0-a611-42e6-ba62-678786337156",{"text":953,"type":600},". In November 2025, it signed an offtake agreement with another US-based battery recycler, Ascend Elements, for 15,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate between 2027 and 2031, representing around a third of Ascend Elements’ production during the agreement period.",{"type":689,"attrs":955,"content":956},{"level":691,"textAlign":49},[957],{"text":958,"type":600,"marks":959},"What does it mean for critical minerals supply chains?",[960],{"type":699},{"type":595,"attrs":962,"content":963},{"textAlign":49},[964],{"text":965,"type":600},"The agreement highlights growing efforts to build domestic supply chains for critical battery materials in the US and Europe as governments and industry seek to reduce dependence on overseas refining capacity. By securing a long-term buyer for metals recovered from recycled battery materials, the deal provides commercial validation for Nth Cycle’s modular refining technology and supports the scaling of recycling-based metal supply.",{"type":595,"attrs":967,"content":968},{"textAlign":49},[969],{"text":970,"type":600},"The announcement also comes amid increasing policy support for domestic critical minerals processing. The US Department of Energy recently announced plans to allocate $500 million in new funding aimed at strengthening the battery materials supply chain, including recycling and refining technologies. The funding is part of broader government efforts to support domestic production of key minerals used in electric vehicles and energy storage systems.",{"type":772,"attrs":972},{"id":973,"body":974},"cad811ee-a8e4-4bdd-b510-6e9abdd41458",[975],{"id":976,"_uid":977,"type":779,"component":780,"fixed_height":547,"use_fixed_height":50,"fixed_height_mobile":547,"fixed_height_tablet":547},"28119144","i-847989e3-0656-4113-999e-feddf234555c","Critical metals refining company Nth Cycle has signed a $1.1 billion, 10-year agreement with Trafigura to provide 2,000 tonnes of contained nickel in MHP and 1,500 tonnes of lithium carbonate refined from 12,000 tonnes of black mass. It is the largest multi-metal commercial agreement between a recycled feedstock supplier and refiner of its kind.",[980],{"slug":544,"name":543,"content":981},{"job_title":557,"image":982,"bio":548,"linkedin":555,"markets_covered":558},{"filename":552},"Trafigura, Nth Cycle sign $1.1 billion deal for recycled metals",[985,986,988,990],{"slug":872,"name":868},{"slug":987,"name":150},"nickel",{"slug":989,"name":8},"lithium",{"slug":991,"name":992},"critical-minerals","Critical Minerals",{"id":49,"alt":49,"name":547,"focus":49,"title":49,"source":49,"filename":547,"copyright":49,"fieldtype":553,"meta_data":994},{},{"id":996,"alt":547,"name":547,"focus":547,"title":547,"source":547,"filename":997,"copyright":547,"fieldtype":553,"meta_data":998,"is_external_url":50},106712663201583,"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/x/92015bc417/q3-2025-black-mass-price-review-china-lifts-black-mass-import-restrictions.avif",{},"Critical metals refining company Nth Cycle has signed a $1.1 billion, 10-year agreement with Trafigura to provide 2,000 tonnes of contained nickel in MHP and 1,500 tonnes of lithium carbonate refined from 12,000 tonnes of black mass.","Mar 19, 2026",1782229585443]