Swedish company Northvolt combines mass production of battery cells with recycling. Under the management of former Tesla executive, Peter Carlsson, the company has created a program called ‘Revolt’. The Northvolt Labs site in Vasteras will be the location for the new pilot plant. It will be operational in the first quarter of 2020. As a result NMC and NCA lithium-ion chemistries will be the focus, with a recycling capacity of 100 tonnes. Northvolt’s battery cell factory at Skelleftera will also have a new large recycling plant. The proposed plan will have a recycling capacity of 25,000 tonnes of battery cells per annum.
Strategy to recycle 50% of recycled batteries
Strategically the company is looking to use at least 50% of recycled batteries from the plants in new cells by 2030. Technology company, ‘EIT InnoEnergy’ has invested EUR 5.8 million in the ‘Revolt’ recycling programme. Northvolt have been working on the pilot plant project for the last two years in the laboratory. Using innovative hydrometallurgical treatment the process has been tested in close collaboration with researchers at Chalmers University of Technology. The process allows the extraction of valuable battery metals like lithium, nickel, manganese and cobalt.
Northvolt are looking for a sustainable model which will allow these valuable materials to be returned into their manufacturing process. Furthermore, this will reduce the need for mining raw materials, improve security of supply and lower the environmental footprint of Northvolt cells by reducing mining-related emissions.
Recycal has invested in a new venture, Ecobatt, to collect and recycle all types of batteries. The plan is to safely recover the various metals from these batteries for future processing.
A new multi-million-dollar purpose built facility will be located at Campbellfield in Victoria. A modern automatic sorting system and processing plant ensures efficient recycling of all types of batteries. The new plant will be supported by a national collection system that is flexible, efficient and safe.
