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Redwood Materials will help recycle Ultium Cells EV batteries

May 26, 2024

Redwood Materials, a company specializing in the recycling, refining, and remanufacturing of end-of-life batteries and production scrap into critical battery materials, has announced a collaboration with Ultium Cells LLC.

Ultium Cells LLC is a joint battery cell manufacturing venture between General Motors and LG Energy Solution, and this partnership will focus on recycling production scrap from Ultium’s new facilities in Warren, Ohio, and Spring Hill, Tennessee. The materials to be recycled include cathode and anode material as well as cell scrap.

Ultium Cells’ two facilities, each spanning 2.8 million-square-feet, are projected to produce more than 80 GWh combined of battery cells annually. Redwood is set to receive the majority of the scrap from Ultium’s manufacturing process. Despite efficient production rates, cell manufacturing still experiences a 5-10% scrap rate on average. This translates to daily truckloads full of material, and approximately 10,000 tons of material annually, for Redwood to recycle and remanufacture into critical battery components for cell manufacturing.

Redwood’s Northern Nevada campus is at the forefront of sustainable battery material production. Compared to traditional methods of processing mined ore into battery-grade materials, Redwood’s approach uses 80% less energy, generates 70% less CO2 emissions, and requires 80% less water.

The company’s hydrometallurgy facility, the first commercial-scale nickel “mine” to open in the United States in a decade, not only recycles battery manufacturing scrap into raw nickel and cobalt but also serves as the only commercial-scale source of lithium supply to come online in the U.S. in decades. This facility was built and activated in less than a quarter of the time it typically takes traditional mining projects to become operational.

According to Stanford, Redwood’s process achieves at least 40% fewer emissions than other recyclers. The process is also scalable, with the capacity to process over 40,000 metric tons (about 15-20 GWh) annually and is expanding daily.

As part of the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program, both Ultium Cells and Redwood were selected by the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Programs Office (LPO) to jumpstart critical battery materials and cell production domestically.

“Our collective goals are paramount in building America’s battery supply chain and supporting a swift, sustainable transition to electric vehicles and a clean energy economy. As automakers and cell manufacturers continue to ramp up domestic battery production, Redwood stands ready to support this growth with our highly sustainable and scalable battery materials process.”