Cirba Solutions strengthens ties with GM

Cirba Solutions has extended a prior agreement with General Motors (GM) to recycle electric vehicle (EV) lithium-ion battery and cell scrap generated by manufacturing and research at certain GM facilities through 2024.

With more than 1 million pounds of batteries already recycled by GM, this program is expected to process even more material as EV production expands, says Charlotte, North Carolina-based Cirba Solutions, which operates a recycling facility in Ohio that it says it is expanding. 

“Our collaboration with GM demonstrates their commitment to achieving sustainability goals and their trust in Cirba Solutions to handle a critical part of the EV supply chain,” Cirba Solutions President and CEO David Klanecky says.

“We are excited to strengthen our focus on sustainability and continue our work with Cirba Solutions,” says Melissa Flaherty, director of sustainable EV Battery Ecosystem at GM. “Integrating efficient EV battery recycling processes helps lower emissions upstream in the battery supply chain and aligns with our vision for a world with zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion.”

Cirba says it operates six facilities, including two active lithium-ion processing sites. In September, Cirba Solutions announced plans to construct a 75,000-square-foot facility in Eloy, Arizona, to recycle lithium-ion batteries. That facility is expected to process enough battery material to support 50,000 EVs annually.

Cirba Solutions also recently received approximately $75 million from the United States Department of Energy to expand its existing lithium-ion processing facility in Lancaster, Ohio.

The company says it aims to increase its lithium-ion battery processing capacity by approximately 600 percent this decade and open several new processing facilities in North America.

This collaboration between Cirba Solutions provides GM builds upon an initial lithium-ion battery agreement from 2021, the company says.