European EV battery R&D firm Inobat and recycling company Gigamine are partnering to create state-of-the-art processes and supporting infrastructure to deliver cost-effective collection, processing, and re-utilization of materials from battery manufacturing and used batteries.
The companies will focus on building the recycling value chain to recover critical materials from end-of-life batteries. They claim that the recycling venture is a crucial link in the Cradle-to-Cradle "C2C" circular value chain to support InoBat's gigafactory plans.
InoBat has recently announced its intent to develop its third Giga factory in Western Europe. It has assessed several suitable sites and will make its final selection and investment decision in 2022. Recycling and active material reprocessing to minimize waste and maximize circularity are integral in determining InoBat's choice of site for the gigafactory.
The collaboration between InoBat and Gigamine follows investments made in 2021 from four strategic cornerstone investors, namely, Rio Tinto, Ideanomics, Amara Raja, and International Finance Corporation. These investors support the development of InoBat's R&D centre, plant, and gigafactory in Slovakia, which enable both InoBat and Gigamine's pilots in recycling and active materials benchmarking.
Andy Palmer, Chairman of InoBat, commented, "I am delighted with our collaboration with Gigamine. We have a similar ethos and commitment to sustainability and climate change mitigation. The recycling and reuse of materials will minimize the environmental impact of InoBat, our suppliers, and our consumers and is an integral part of our cradle-to-cradle philosophy".
"Together with Gigamine, we will create optimal recycling and reprocessing value-chains for the manufacturing, supply, and ultimate disposal of battery components. I am incredibly excited that we now intend to extend our success into recycling and reuse of materials, to complete the circle and achieve net-zero", he added.
Peter Cowan, Director of Gigamine, said, "An effective and sustainable EV battery recycling process will be a critical component for the cradle-to-cradle economy. The battery recycling market is emerging rapidly with exciting new technologies that are nevertheless within their infancy".
Gigamine is developing the technology and infrastructure for safe and efficient recycling of batteries and to recover critical raw materials for efficiency and sustainability. With its R&D programs, as well as partnerships with leading battery technology R&D centres across the world, the company aims to deliver sector-leading added value to its customers and partners.
"By working with InoBat, we can together offer world-leading recycling and waste management processes that will optimize the scope of available solutions. This important partnership represents a significant step in Gigamine's expansion and will be critical in delivering the circular economy for consumers and industry alike– to ultimately contribute to a net-zero future", added Cowan.
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