U.S. Government Invests in Domestic Electric Vehicle Battery Recycling
The U.S. government has awarded a $475 million loan to Li-Cycle U.S. Inc. to construct a recycling facility for electric vehicle batteries in Rochester, New York, according to a press release.
As part of an effort to onshore and re-shore EV and critical mineral supply chains, the loan is intended to help Li-Cycle expand its domestic operations and to bolster EV adoption.
By gathering aggregate source material, such as end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and battery manufacturing scrap, Li-Cycle will have it processed into a feedstock called “black mass,” located across three facilities that are located in Rochester, New York, Gilbert, Arizona, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
The black mass is then returned to the Rochester “Hub” facility for additional processing. Li-Cycle has estimated that this facility will become a key producer of recycled battery-grade lithium carbonate in the U.S., with the capability to meet the battery needs of approximately 180,000 EVs annually at peak operations.
