Electra ships first recycled product

Marking a historical moment for its endeavors to support the green energy transition, Electra Battery Materials Corp. announced its first shipment of recycled nickel-cobalt from its refinery complex north of Toronto, Canada.

"The first customer delivery of product from our refinery marks another important milestone on the path to commercializing our black mass refining capabilities," said Electra Battery Materials CEO Trent Mell.

Black mass, a material produced from shredding expired lithium-ion batteries after the casings are removed, typically consists of some mix of lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, copper, and graphite ready to be recycled for new batteries.

Late last year, Electra began testing to validate its hydrometallurgical process to recover these battery materials in a plant-scale setting.

"Since the trial's launch late in 2022, we have proven that our proprietary hydrometallurgical process works successfully, produces high-quality products, including lithium carbonate and nickel-cobalt MHP (mixed hydroxide precipitate), and supports compelling economics," added Mell.

Coming a long way since its First Cobalt days, the now-named Electra Battery Materials was founded in 2017 and has quickly gained traction as a probable leading provider of the critical minerals and metals that will fuel a zero-carbon future.

Starting with the acquisition of the Yukon cobalt refinery, a fully permitted processing facility in Ontario that operated from 1996 until 2015, over the ensuing years, the company has steadily advanced into an operation that is capable of producing roughly 5,000 metric tons of battery-grade cobalt sulfate per year.

Located less than 400 miles (640 kilometers) from Great Lakes manufacturing towns such as Detroit and Buffalo, this rail-accessible refinery has garnered strong interest from battery and automotive manufacturers seeking a secure and sustainable supply of this controversial battery metal.

With the first mover advantage of the first cobalt sulfate refinery in North America, Electra has quickly carved itself a position in the low-carbon energy and transportation transition for years to come. And with plans to expand into alternate recycling technologies, such as solvometallurgy, as well as black mass material recovery, Electra is well on its way to helping the West break away from its reliance on the East.