Altilium and Enva, a recycling and resource recovery specialist, announced a new strategic partnership for the collection and recycling of EV batteries in the UK. The partnership brings together Enva’s nationwide collection infrastructure and extensive relationships with car dealerships, along with Altilium’s expertise in the recycling of old EV batteries and recovery of critical materials, including lithium, marking a significant step towards the creation of a circular economy for battery minerals in the UK.

Under the MOU, Enva and Altilium will work together to explore several key initiatives, including the safe handling and collection of EV batteries from across the UK for recycling using Altilium’s EcoCathode process.

Using advanced hydrometallurgical recycling processes, Altilium can recover more than 95% of the battery metals, in a format that can be directly reused in the production of new batteries.

The arrangement with Enva will provide significant commercial benefits to Altilium by eliminating the need to establish its own collection infrastructure and direct relationships with multiple waste producers and automotive OEMs.

The partnership will also provide feed for Altilium’s Teesside refinery (ACT 4), the only planned facility in the UK refining lithium-ion waste to battery-ready Cathode Active Materials (CAM) for direct reuse in new battery production. The plant will have the capacity to recycle waste batteries from 150,000 EVs a year, producing 30,000 MT of CAM, enough to meet 20% of the expected UK demand by 2030.

Over the next decade, more than 100 million EV batteries are expected to reach end of life globally.

Altilium is the only company in the UK recycling and upcycling old EV batteries to produce high nickel CAM for direct reuse in new EV batteries. The company’s proprietary EcoCathode process results in a 60% reduction in carbon emissions and 20% lower costs compared to virgin materials, paving the way for the production of more affordable and even cleaner EVs.