Altilium welcomes the European Commission’s proposal of up to €3 billion in financial support to strengthen the EU’s battery industry, with a focus on sustainability across the entire value chain.

As a leading developer of green recycling processes, Altilium is well placed to help develop a sustainable supply chain of low carbon EV battery materials in Europe:

• Our first European EV battery recycling plant will begin operations in Bulgaria in 2024, processing waste from 24,000 vehicles.
• Altilium will also recycle mine waste to extract copper, an essential component in EV battery manufacturing, at our Medet recycling initiative in Bulgaria. By reprocessing this mine waste, we are not only reducing the harmful environmental impact of traditional mining, but also providing a sustainable solution to meet the growing demands for copper, which makes up around 11% of an NMC battery by weight.

Under the Commission’s proposals, financial support well be focused on the production of the most sustainable batteries, thus promoting the development of a circular supply chain for battery materials.

The dedicated funding follows the adoption of the EU’s new Batteries Regulation, which sets strict targets for recycling efficiency, material recovery and recycled content. This includes minimum levels of recycled materials (6% lithium) and targets for lithium recovery efficiency from waste batteries (50% by 2027 and 80% by 2031).

Achieving the lithium recovery target of 80% will require significant investment in hydrometallurgical processes, as opposed to the pyrometallurgical recycling.

Altilium’s proprietary technology can recover over 95% of the cathode metals, including lithium, from end-of-life batteries. These recovered materials aren’t just recycled; they’re reengineered and upcycled to high nickel CAM, ensuring their seamless integration into new batteries. By upcycling, we could reduce the carbon footprint in CAM by 50% compared to virgin materials and cost by 20%.