Stena Recycling to establish 10,000 tpa pre-processing plant in Sweden

Stena Recycling, one of the largest e-waste recyclers in Europe and a leader in end-of-life-vehicle recycling in the Nordics, will invest 250 MSEK (29 MUSD) in a 10,000 tpa pre-processing plant for lithium-ion batteries in Halmstad, Sweden.

In the new facility Stena will be able to prepare, sort, and shred batteries from various types of applications and chemistries including LFP and LCO. The process is using vacuum distillation for separation of electrolyte. The dried material (black mass) will then be used to regenerate new active material, a step developed jointly with the cathode manufacturer Johnson Matthey.

The batteries will initially be collected via Stena Recycling's 90 facilities in Sweden, and eventually via other countries where Stena Recycling operates. The company has today presence in 7 countries, including the Nordics, Germany and Poland, with around 180 facilities. Initial sorting will take place at these facilities, but most of the recycling is then done at the new facility in Halmstad.

Stena Recycling is far from beginners when it comes to waste batteries having operated sorting operations in Denmark in more than 10 years as well as being a major handler of lithium-ion batteries from e-waste. The company has been operating a battery center in Halmstad since 2018 where PHEV/BEV batteries have been consolidated and disassembled.

Besides Stena Recycling's activities in battery recycling they also operate the startup Batteryloop, an energy storage company specialized in second life batteries from cars and buses with agreements with Volvo and Volvo Cars.

The plant is planned for commissioning in late 2022 or early 2023.

Read Stena Recycling's press release here: https://www.stenarecycling.com/news/stena-recycling-invests-heavily-in-new-battery-recycling-plant/