Li-Cycle partners with Ecostor and Morrow Batteries

The Canadian battery recycler Li-Cycle will establish a battery recycling facility in Southern Norway, the first plant in Europe for the NYSE-listed company. The plant will be a joint venture with aspiring battery manufacturer Morrow Batteries and the second life specialist Ecostor.

The recycling facility will have the capacity to process up to 10,000 tonnes of lithium-ion batteries per year, including battery manufacturing scrap, full EV packs, and energy storage systems. The facility, of which Li-Cycle will be the majority owner, is expected to be operational in early 2023.

Morrow Batteries is one of as much as four potential large scale cell manufacturing factories which are to be built in Norway. Headquartered in Arendal the company is aiming for a planned annual capacity of 43 GWh. Ecostor is an energy storage system provider specialised in using second life EV batteries.

As part of the agreement ECO STOR will provide the joint venture with end-of-life lithium-ion batteries, along with Morrow providing lithium-ion battery manufacturing scrap from its planned battery manufacturing facilities in Norway. Li-Cycle will provide equipment, technology, technical services, and operational management for the recycling facility, while having the right to acquire 100% of the facility’s production of black mass. This means that the material will be processed in Li-Cycle's hydrometallurgical facility which is under construction in Rochester in New York, in United States.

The plant will be the second pre-processing plant to be established in Norway after Hydrovolt, the joint venture between Norsk Hydro and Northvolt and operated by Batteriretur will have commissioned its new plant in Fredrikstad later this year.

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