Critical battery materials company American Battery Technology (NASDAQ: ABAT) (ABTC) announced the start of operations at its commercial-scale, lithium-ion battery recycling facility in Nevada, USA on Thursday.
In an official statement, the company announced that the start of operations at its Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center (TRIC) represents the initiation of revenue-generating activities and the introduction of recycled battery-grade metals to bolster the security of the US battery metals supply chain.
This commercial facility can process more than 20,000 metric tonnes of battery materials annually at full capacity. In its initial phase, it will convert these materials into recycled products, including copper, aluminum, steel, a lithium intermediate, and a black mass intermediate material. These products will be sold through a marketing agreement with the global metals trader TechMet-Mercuria.
In the second phase, the lithium intermediate will be refined into battery-grade lithium hydroxide, and the black mass intermediate material will be further refined into battery-grade nickel, cobalt, manganese, and lithium hydroxide products.
ABTC’s battery recycling system is designed to recover battery materials efficiently, achieving high yields while keeping costs and environmental impact to a minimum.
In stark contrast to traditional battery recycling methods that rely on high-temperature furnaces, like smelting processes, or non-strategic shredding and grinding systems, ABTC’s system prioritizes efficient separation, recovery, and purification of high-value, battery-grade products. This results in reduced environmental impact and enhanced cost-effectiveness compared to conventional methods.
“Our research & development, engineering, project management, and operations teams have been working with the commissioning of this facility as our highest priority, and we are proud to have accelerated our timelines to have installed our first piece of equipment within a month of gaining access to this new site, and to now have begun commercial operations less than six months later,” said Andrés Meza, chief operating officer for American Battery Technology Company.
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American Battery Technology work has won awards
ABTC has spent several years validating and refining its recycling technologies. This innovation has been recognized through multiple achievements, including winning the battery recycling segment of the BASF-sponsored Circularity Challenge.
Additionally, ABTC secured a $2 million battery recycling grant from the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC), a collaborative effort involving the U.S. Department of Energy, General Motors Company (NYSE: GM), Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F), and Stellantis N.V. (NYSE: STLA) . This grant supports an ongoing commercial-scale project demonstrating that recycled battery metal products from domestic U.S. sources can be produced at a lower cost and with significantly improved social and environmental impact compared to conventionally mined virgin minerals.
Recently, ABTC has secured a competitive U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) grant for a $20 million project aimed at developing and commercializing a set of next generation battery recycling technologies, further enhancing the recovery of recycled products and reducing operational costs.
Company shares rose 3.8 per cent to $7.14 on the NASDAQ exchange on Thursday.
joseph@mugglehead.com
