TES starts large facility in Rotterdam to recycle batteries from electric vehicles

Source:TES

TES is commencing operations at a large facility in the port of Rotterdam to recycle batteries from electric vehicles. TES is one of the largest companies worldwide in the battery and e-waste recycling. The company has taken the lease of an approx. 10,000 m2 facility along the Elbeweg, including a 2,000 m2 building, with plans to extend, providing a 40,000 m2 site in total. The facility is planned to be fully operational by late 2022 and will be the first Lithium-Ion battery recycling plant in the Netherlands. The number of electric vehicles is increasing rapidly, which leads to both a huge rise in global demand for Lithium-Ion batteries as well as discarded batteries.

Allard Castelein, CEO Port of Rotterdam: “We are working not only towards a net zero CO2 emission port and industry in 2050, but also looking at ways to make the industry more circular. Therefore besides working on projects regarding for instance hydrogen and carbon capture and storage, it’s important to take significant steps to establish circular production processes. The TES project in Rotterdam is exactly that. This could very well become the largest European facility for recycling batteries from electric cars.”

Thomas Holberg, Global Vice President of Battery Operations at TES: “We have an unwavering ambition to turn the port of Rotterdam site into a state-of-the-art European battery recycling facility. Once up and running, we will have up to 10,000 tonnes annually of shredding capacity and a subsequent hydrometallurgical process which focuses on the recovery of Nickel, Cobalt and Lithium as a precursor feedstock for the battery industry."

The Port of Rotterdam aspires to be a frontrunner in both the energy transition and the circular economy. Being Europe’s largest port and industrial cluster, the port of Rotterdam can make a significant contribution realizing climate and circularity targets of Europe and the Netherlands. The Port Authority therefore works in close cooperation with leading companies, like TES, to develop circular hubs for plastics, batteries and building materials in Rotterdam. This way economic growth and employment go hand in hand with the energy transition and the creation of a circular economy.

TES is active in Europe, Asia, Australia and the USA. In March TES opened a state-of-the-art facility to recycle lithium batteries in Singapore, the first of its kind in Southeast Asia. The facility uses a combination of mechanic equipment and hydrometallurgical processes to recover precious metals such as Nickel, Lithium and Cobalt. The recovery rate of precious metals exceeds 90% and yields a purity level of almost 99%. Thus, the metals recovered from lithium batteries are commercially ready for fresh battery production. TES plans to use comparable technology in Rotterdam.