Redwood Materials acquires pre-processing unit of German recycler Redux

The US-based battery material and recycling company Redwood Material has acquired the lithium-ion battery recycling unit Germa company Redux from Austrian waste management company Saubermacher. The acquisition is the first operational establishment of Redwood in Europe.

Redux was founded as a battery sorting company in 1997 and has been an integrated part of the European battery recycling industry when it grew in the early 2000s supported by the EU Battery Directive. The company has been one of the leading companies in both sorting and processing of alkaline and nickel metalhydride batteries. In 2018 Redux invested in pre-processing plant for lithium-ion batteries in Bremerhaven which originally had a capacity of 2,000 tonnes with ability to scale to 10,000 tonnes per year with increased thermal capacity.

Redwood has acquired the pre-processing unit in Bremerhaven while Saubermacher will continue to operate the sorting and recycling of portable batteries in Offenbach under the name Saubermacher Recycling GmbH.

The current Bremerhaven facility is equipped to recycle electric vehicle and E-bike batteries, stationary storage systems and consumer devices like cell phones, laptops, and power drills. The site has a staff of 70 people.