Photo: Possessed Photography on UnsplashEssex-based
Altilium Metals, a clean technology start-up, has selected Teesside as the preferred location for the largest planned recycling facility in the UK for end-of-life electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
With the UK banning the sale of petrol and diesel cars in 2030, the global EV revolution could
create more than 11 million tons of battery waste annually by 2030, enough to fill Wembley
Stadium almost 20-times over every year.
The mega-scale recycling plant will transform battery waste from 150,000 EVs a year, providing a secure and sustainable supply of the critical metals needed to support the growing production of EVs in the UK – at a time when global demand for these minerals has never been higher.
For Teesside, the proposed multi-million-pound investment is expected to create 100 to 200
high-value jobs by 2025 — and further underlines Teesside’s reputation as the UK’s premier
location for clean energy and innovation. Hundreds more jobs will be created during the
construction phase, with a projected 18-month build to get the plant up and running. Furthermore,
the facility will help attract EV battery manufacturers to the region.
Altilium Metals has secured over £3 million in Government Innovation Awards to scale up its
proprietary recycling technology in order to meet the exponential demand for critical metals
needed for the transition to ‘net zero’. The highly efficient process, which is currently being
piloted at the company’s recently opened UK Technology Centre, enables these metals to be
recovered and supplied back into the EV battery supply chain. This, in turn, leads to significant
cost savings in EV battery production and lower carbon emissions compared to the mining of
raw materials.
Kamran Mahdavi, CEO, Altilium Metals, said: “We are excited to announce Teesside as the preferred location for Altilium Metal’s first UK recycling plant, as we scale up our technology to help meet the growing demand for critical metals and move towards a circular economy for the battery value chain. The significant volume of end-of-life batteries and scrap from giga-factories expected in the UK requires mega-scale recycling solutions and we look forward to demonstrating the process at scale
here on Teesside.
“Until recently, lithium-ion batteries were regarded as hazardous waste, but they can actually
serve as valuable sources of raw materials such as lithium, nickel and cobalt. Recycling or
“urban mining” will play an important role in making sure these valuable metals are returned
to the supply chain in the most environmentally friendly way, rather than ending up as landfill
waste.”
Teesside offers the ideal location for a plant of this scale, with access to the UK’s largest
Freeport, a highly skilled local workforce, local government support and a rich heritage in the
field of chemical processing – not to mention its proximity to current and planned
manufactures of EVs and batteries.
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen, said: “EVs are critical to a low-carbon future,
but there are still significant advances that need to be made to ensure their production is as
clean and efficient as possible.
Altilium Metals’ recycling technology can help play a massive part in this, and in the wider
circular economy and I am delighted to learn of its plans to come to our region. We are seeing
a lot of activity in EV innovation here, with other plans for lithium plants for battery
production moving on swiftly.
“This latest announcement will help cement our expertise and status as a fantastic place to
do business in the sector, helping to attract more groundbreaking firms in the cleaner, safer
and healthier industries of tomorrow, while creating hundreds more good-quality, well-paid
jobs.”
Altilium Metals is working closely with engineering consultants Hatch on plans for the plant,
with the support of the UK Government’s Automotive Transformation Fund and Innovation
Consultant Tatton Consulting. A decision on the final location for the Teesside site will be
made in early 2023. Altilium’s ambition is to have two sites operational by 2030, supporting
400 high-value jobs.
The UK plant, the largest currently planned, will be capable of processing a mixed stream of
feed including end-of-life lithium-ion batteries as well as ‘off-specification material’ from cell
producers. In the near term, to alleviate possible shortage in battery waste for mega-scale
recycling solutions, the plant will incorporate an option to process raw materials sustainably
mined from our nickel, cobalt assets in Indonesia.
Closed-loop recycling of lithium-ion batteries will serve the EV supply chain
being built in the UK, with any excess capacity being sent to the European market. The UK plant, the largest currently planned, will be capable of processing a mixed stream of feed including end-of-life lithium-ion batteries as well as ‘off spec material’ from cell producers. In the near term, to alleviate possible shortage in battery waste for mega-scale recycling solutions, the plant will incorporate an option to process raw materials sustainably mined from the company‘s nickel and cobalt assets in Indonesia.
A circular economy needs to be established for the second life of batteries to mitigate raw-
material supply risks and bring energy security to the UK, optimise the battery carbon
footprint and improve the economics of the battery recollection obligation for automotive
manufacturers.