Li-Cycle to build battery recycling hub in upstate New York

Original article was published in ChargedEV Magazine

September 28, 2020 – Tom Lombrado

Battery recycling specialist Li-Cycle will invest over $175 million dollars in a lithium-ion battery recycling “Hub” at Eastman Business Park in upstate New York. The new facility will work in conjunction with  Li-Cycle’s “Spoke” facility, which is already located at the Rochester site. Li-Cycle plans to begin construction on the Hub facility in 2021.

Li-Cycle’s Spoke and Hub operations will complement each other. There will be several US-based Spokes that aggregate and refine spent Li-ion batteries, separating the materials. Li-Cycle’s Rochester Spoke, due to open this fall, will be capable of shredding up to 5,000 tons of used batteries per year. Ultimately, the Hub operation in Rochester will receive battery materials from the Rochester Spoke and similar operations across the US, and process them further for use as raw materials in future manufacturing, including for new batteries.

SEE ALSO: Q&A with Li-Cycle CEO Ajay Kochhar

Li-Cycle claims that its process recovers 80 to 100% of all materials found in Li-ion batteries with no wastewater discharge. Recovered materials are either processed to the point of being reusable in battery production or other applications or sent for further processing to other recyclers (e.g. steel and plastics). The company processes all types of Li-ion batteries used in electronic devices, EVs and energy storage.

Li-Cycle co-founder Tim Johnston said, “We are excited to be able to announce Rochester as the location of Li-Cycle’s first commercial Hub refinery. This facility will enable sustainable closed-loop production of critical materials for the battery industry, such as cobalt, nickel and lithium, right here in North America, supporting the development of EVs and other sustainable energy applications. We deeply appreciate the continued support of the local community, government agencies and Kodak in the development of this project.”

“This international partnership with Li-Cycle will foster the supply chain of lithium-ion batteries, which are in high demand, and will further expand the thriving energy storage industry in the region,” said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.