Li-Cycle to establish Lithium-ion Battery Resource Recovery plant in New York

Empire State Development (ESD) announced that Li-Cycle Corporation, a North America based lithium-ion battery resource recovery company, will establish its first US-based facility in New York State. The company will set up operations at Eastman Business Park (EBP) in Monroe County in an effort to tap into the robust lithium-ion battery supply chain in the United States and the lithium-ion battery ecosystem in Rochester.

Li-Cycle selected EBP for this facility after determining it as the best location for the company to provide services to its growing client base to the South and Midwest. The company has also committed to creating a minimum of 23 jobs in its first year of operation. Li-Cycle expects to be fully operational at the facility later this year.

Founded in 2016 in Ontario, Canada, Li-Cycle was awarded a grant through Sustainable Development Technology Canada to construct a demonstration facility. With that facility fully operational, the company is now ready to undertake the first phase of its commercialisation process at EBP. The company will initially occupy 57,000 square feet of a preexisting process building and is considering additional phases for the project in the coming years.

Ajay Kochhar, CEO and Co-Founder of Li-Cycle said, “As the United States and world enter an unprecedented phase of growth for electric vehicles and electro-mobility, rechargeable lithium-ion batteries and the critical materials within them are crucial for the industry's success. Li-Cycle is proud to be bringing our sustainable technologies and approaches to the EBP, as Li-Cycle's first United States-based commercial facility. The facility will foster the development of closed loop lithium-ion battery resource recovery in the State of New York and the broader United States market. In turn, we are pleased to support the creation of high-quality jobs in the Finger Lakes region and look forward to our continued growth in the EBP.”

Since its inception, Li-Cycle has developed and validated a unique process that allows them to recover 80 to 100% of all materials found in lithium-ion batteries while maintaining no wastewater discharge and actualising the company's zero waste philosophy. All materials that are recovered from lithium-ion batteries are either processed to the point of being reusable in battery production, thus closing the loop, or sent for further processing to other recyclers (i.e., steel and plastics) to ensure all materials generated are being returned to the economy. The company is capable of processing all types of lithium-ion batteries used in electronic devices, e-mobility, electric vehicles and energy storage.