Altilium, JLR strike battery recycling alliance

Altilium Metals, which is building a lithium-ion battery recycling facility in that nation, plans to work with an allied automaker on a project designed to produce and validate electric vehicle (EV) battery cells using materials recovered from end-of-life EV batteries.

According to Altilium, the project will demonstrate battery cells produced with recovered cathode active materials (CAM) that will be validated for use in vehicles” produced by U.K.-based JLR, formerly known as Jaguar Land Rover.

The England-based battery metals firm says the project is being undertaken with support from the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK, Coventry, England, under the latest round of its Advanced Route to Market Demonstrator (ARMD) competition.

Working along with JLR, Altilium says it will leverage its advanced EcoCathode process to deliver a significant carbon reduction in EVs.

"By recovering critical materials including lithium, cobalt and nickel, Altilium’s process reduces the need for newly mined materials, resulting in a 60 percent reduction in carbon emissions," the company adds.

“We are proud to lead this pioneering project with JLR that brings us one step closer to a circular economy for battery materials in the U.K.,” says Christian Marston, Ph.D., chief operating officer of Altilium. “By demonstrating that EV battery cells made from recovered materials can meet the rigorous standards of the automotive industry, we’re not only reducing the environmental impact of battery production but also supporting the U.K.’s efforts to build a more sustainable and resilient EV supply chain."

According to Altilium, JLR will conduct validation studies on recycled-content battery pouch cells at its battery testing facilities.

Production of the battery cells for those studies could take place at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC) in Coventry, using recovered battery materials produced by Altilium at its mini-commercial ACT2 facility and its ACT1 pilot plant, both in Devon, England.

“We’re delighted to be part of this innovative project that will help the industry move toward an even cleaner future,” says Sean Gilgunn, managing director of the UKBIC. “Our role in the battery ecosystem is to help companies prove their new materials and technologies can be industrialized, and working with Altilium will help them prove their recycled CAM can be an effective option in future EV batteries.”

Altilium's planned Teesside, England, battery recycling facility will be the U.K.’s largest integrated battery recycling facility, capable of processing 150,000 EV batteries annually and supplying 30,000 tons per year of CAM, according to the company.