US lithium-ion battery recycler wins funding from OIA

Ramping up its portfolio of investments within the world lithium-ion battery trade, Oman Funding Authority (OIA) – the built-in sovereign wealth fund of the Sultanate of Oman – is amongst a variety of strategic worldwide traders which have injected new funding into Ascend Components, a US-based engineered supplies and lithium-ion battery recycling agency.

Massachusetts-based Ascend Components introduced on Wednesday that it has secured $300 million in fairness and debt financing, together with $200 million in Collection C fairness investments from a world group of strategic and monetary traders, together with Muscat-based OIA.

The funding spherical was led by Fifth Wall Local weather and joined by SK ecoplant, the environmental unit of South Korean conglomerate SK Group. Different new traders embody Lithium Americas Company, GLy Capital Administration‘s New Mobility Fund, Mirae Asset Capital & LS and Shinhan GIB. The funding is along with two just lately awarded grants totalling $480 million from the US Division of Power.

A part of the funding, Ascend Components mentioned, will assist the development of its new Apex 1 sustainable Electrical Automobile (EV) battery materials plant within the US state of Kentucky. Estimated to price round $1 billion, this one-of-a-kind facility, it famous, will produce sustainable, engineered battery supplies from recycled lithium-ion batteries to equip as much as 250,000 electrical autos per yr.

Moreover, the funding will speed up commercialisation of Ascend Components’ revolutionary and proprietary Hydro-to-Cathode direct precursor synthesis course of, which establishes a closed-loop, EV battery supplies provide chain in North America, the corporate acknowledged.

OIA’s Director – Personal Fairness, Ibrahim al Eisri, was quoted as saying: “We’re happy to accomplice with Ascend Components to develop and rework the lithium-ion battery recycling trade globally. Our funding in Ascend aligns nicely with OIA’s technique of investing in transformative corporations in sectors which enhance Oman’s Vison 2040 priorities.”

Ascend Components CEO Mike O’Kronley added: “Our funding companions perceive the pressing want to provide sustainable, lithium-ion battery supplies. It’s not sufficient to easily recycle lithium-ion batteries and get better metals for the worldwide commodity markets. Our patented, closed-loop course of goes past easy battery recycling. As a substitute, we produce sustainable, high-performance cathode lively supplies that may go straight again into new EV batteries.”

The corporate’s present facility within the US state of Georgia at the moment processes end-of-life EV batteries – recycled supplies from which can finally feed Ascend Components’ new Apex 1 plant in Kentucky. Recycling capability of the Georgia unit is predicted to rise to 30,000 metric tonnes by the tip of this yr – a part of a recycling capability of over 150,000 metric tonnes that Ascend Components is concentrating on globally by 2026.

The purpose is to rework these recycled components into high-performance, customised, EV battery cathode lively materials precursor (pCAM) and cathode lively supplies (CAM) that meet the necessities of top-tier battery producers, in accordance with the corporate.

Considerably, it’s OIA’s second such EV-related funding to this point this month. On October 5, the Authority introduced an funding in Group14, one other US firm manufacturing trailblazing battery supplies.

Group14 specialises in manufacturing revolutionary lithium-silicon battery supplies to exchange conventional lithium-ion batteries – at the moment the mainstay of the worldwide EV trade. Group14 has additionally attracted a number of main traders within the battery supplies area, together with Porsche and SK Supplies, amongst others.