Toronto, Ontario — Ultium Cells, General Motors and LG Energy Solutions joint venture, has partnered with Li-Cycle to recycle up to 100 percent of material scrap from battery cell manufacturing at Ultium’s Lordstown, Ohio mega-factory, the companies announced Tuesday.
“Our combined efforts with Ultium and GM will be instrumental in redirecting battery manufacturing scrap from landfills and returning a substantial amount of valuable battery-grade materials back into the battery supply chain,” said Ajay Kochhar, President, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, Li-Cycle. “This partnership is a critical step forward in advancing our proven lithium-ion resource recovery technology as a more sustainable alternative to mining.”
Li-Cycle Corp, an industry leader in lithium-ion battery resource recovery and the leading lithium-ion battery recycler in North America, will recover the raw materials contained in the scrap, transforming them into valuable products helping contribute to the circular economy, says the company.
As North America’s electric vehicle production ramps up, this recycling partnership will be an essential piece in closing the battery supply chain loop and enabling sustainable production of new EV batteries.
When fully operational in 2022, the $2.3 billion Ultium battery cell manufacturing facility in Lordstown will span 278,000 sq. m. (3 million sq. ft.), making it one of the largest EV battery manufacturing plants in North America.
Li-Cycle will help GM expand upon the materials it currently recycles today and will play a key role in GM’s zero-waste initiative by rerouting battery manufacturing scrap back into the supply chain through this multi-year contract.
“GM’s zero-waste initiative aims to divert more than 90 percent of its manufacturing waste from landfills and incineration globally by 2025,” said Ken Morris, GM vice president of Electric and Autonomous Vehicles. “Now, we’re going to work closely with Ultium Cells and Li-Cycle to help the industry get even better use out of the materials.”
