Li-Cycle has secured a loan of approximately $475 million
For our first story,Li-Cycle has secured a loan of approximately $475 million from the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office (LPO) to expand its battery recycling facilities in the United States. This financing will support the restart of construction on its hydrometallurgical recycling hub in Rochester, New York, a project paused in December 2023 after anticipated costs nearly doubled to around $1 billion. Once fully operational, the Rochester facility is expected to produce sufficient lithium carbonate to power around 180,000 electric vehicles annually by processing black mass from Li-Cycle’s three recycling facilities, known as ‘spokes.’
The Company anticipates that the Rochester Hub will become North America's first commercial hydrometallurgical facility dedicated to resource recovery, serving as an important domestic source of recycled materials essential for lithium-ion battery production. This facility will produce battery-grade lithium carbonate and mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP)—an intermediate product rich in nickel, cobalt, and manganese.
“The loan demonstrates DOE’s role in supporting a strong domestic EV battery and critical materials supply chain, which is critical to strengthening America’s national and energy security,” said LPO head Jigar Shah in as the news was announced.
FREYR Battery announced that it has been awarded a €122 million grant by the European Union Innovation Fund
FREYR Battery,:a leader in sustainable battery and clean energy development, recently announced that it has been awarded a €122 million grant by the European Union Innovation Fund (EUIF). This funding will support the development of FREYR's proposed Cathode Active Material manufacturing joint venture in Vaasa, Finland.
The grant supports FREYR's proposed project , aiming to establish a large-scale LFP CAM facility with an initial production capacity of 30,000 tons annually. Securing this grant marks a key step toward finalizing the award, expected in the first quarter of 2025, pending various criteria. Meanwhile, FREYR collaborates with its technology provider, partners, customers, and stakeholders to advance the project’s foundation.
“We are very grateful to be selected for this grant award from the EU Innovation Fund, which demonstrates the EU’s continued support for FREYR’s ongoing industrialization efforts of sustainable battery value chain solutions,” commented Tom Einar Jensen, FREYR’s Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer. “FREYR is focused on its development efforts in the U.S. while we continue to explore avenues to unlock shareholder value from our portfolio of real assets and potential projects in Norway and Europe such as the proposed CAM facility in Finland. We look forward to collaborating with our colleagues at the EUIF to finalize this grant.”
NextStar has officially launched battery module production
For our third and last story, NextStar Energy, the joint venture between LG Energy Solution and Stellantis, has officially launched battery module production, marking a major milestone in its operational growth. Construction has been progressing steadily, with over 7,500 Canadian tradespeople contributing nearly 5.7 million work hours since groundbreaking in 2022. With an average of over 2,000 tradespeople on site daily, the project highlights the significant scale and collaboration necessary for completion.
These were the biggest updates from the EV Battery materials industry across Europe and the US. If you enjoyed the video please give it a like, comment, and share. If you have an advanced engineering project coming up, CMC provides engineering, construction and project management services to help you deliver your project ahead of schedule and under budget, for more information visit www.expertisedelivered.com or reach out to me directly on LinkedIn. Thank you for watching, I’m Cain van Heyningen, this has been the Battery breakdown, and I hope to see you again next month.