BASF has announced it will build a black mass plant for recycling batteries in Schwarzheide, Germany, where it already has a cathode active materials production and recycling facility. 

The company says the new plant, which is expected to begin production in early 2024, will be built to the highest environmental, health and safety standards. BASF plans to direct the lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese in the black mass to a commercial hydrometallurgical refinery that will handle the next part of battery recycling, which it expects to be built by 2025.

According to BASF, the new plant will have an annual processing capacity of 15,000 tons of EV batteries and production scrap.

Source: BASF