Altilium and UKBIC collaboration yields first UK recycled EV batteries

Clean technology operation Altilium has been collaborating with UKBIC to tackle the sustainability issue of EV battery production. The partnership has paid dividends, announcing that the UK produced its first EV battery cell batch with recycled cathode active materials (CAM).

These recycled EV battery cells were manufactured at the Coventry facility of UKBIC using Altilium’s own proprietary product, EcoCathode CAM. The ground-breaking manufacturing process involves dismantling EV batteries that have reached the end of their lifecycles and shredding them to create a special powder the company refers to as “black mass.”

Black mass is a key ingredient that is processed, and 95% of the critical minerals, including lithium, are extracted. The resulting product is then used to create high-nickel CAM, which can then be distributed to EV manufacturing facilities across the UK to build brand-new EV batteries.

It’s a massive step forward for the UK’s EV industry as it seeks to improve its sustainability and reduce its impact on the environment. Research from Imperial College London has demonstrated that Altilium and UKBIC’s recycling process matches and surpasses virgin materials in terms of battery performance.

These recycled materials are estimated to match and surpass average virgin battery lifespans, charge times, and costs. Moreover, Altilium estimates that adopting recycled materials as part of the EV manufacturing process reduces the impact on the environment by 74% compared to utilizing Chinese supply chains.

Altilium is already planning to capitalize on the success through its miniature commercial plant in Plymouth, which has recently launched operations. It’s also planning to build a battery recycling plant on Teesside. When active, it’s estimated that it will be able to process 150,000 end-of-life EV batteries annually.

According to Altilium Chief Operating Officer and co-founder, Dr. Christian Marston, “This milestone marks the first time full battery circularity has been achieved in the UK, from recovering critical minerals, including lithium, from end-of-life EV batteries and upcycling them into a high-performance cathode, to manufacturing a new battery for validation with a leading UK automotive OEM.”

With Chinese EV manufacturers dominating the global market, UK companies have been tasked with beefing up the nation’s domestic manufacturing capabilities. Reducing its reliance on Chinese supply chains is considered a key goal for the UK EV industry, and this technology is expected to go a long way toward achieving more self-sufficiency for the UK in this sector.