Hydrovolt opens battery recycling plant in France
Norwegian battery recycling company Hydrovolt said on Tuesday it will expand internationally by opening a factory in France, boosting an emerging hub for electric vehicle battery production.
The factory will open in the town of Hordain, in what will become known as France’s Battery Valley, while four major battery production facilities will be opened.
“This is a major milestone for Hydrovolt,” CEO Ole-Christen Enger said in a statement.
“Access to the French market will help us maintain our position as a leading European recycler of EV and industrial batteries,” he added.
Hydrovolt is a joint venture between aluminum giant Norsk Hydro and Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt and operates Europe’s largest recycling company for used or defective electric car batteries.
For electric vehicles to reach their full potential to reduce CO2 emissions, recycling the batteries to reuse the valuable minerals they contain is important.
Hydrovolt can turn used batteries into a powder, or “black mass”, consisting of nickel, manganese, cobalt, lithium and graphite, which can be reused to make new batteries.
“Recycling provides a new supply of battery-quality metals, which are preferable to freshly mined materials,” the company said.
Hydovolt says it can recover up to 95 percent of metals from used batteries for reuse.
The EU has set recycling targets and the rush to electric vehicles has raised concerns about adequate supply.
The amount of the investment in the French facility was not disclosed.
Hydrovolt said the facility, which could open as early as next year, would initially serve as a collection point for battery discharge and dismantling, but is suitable for recycling activities.
“It is crucial for us to build a local presence across Europe to help build a circular battery value chain,” said Enger.
– Northvolt delays expansion plans –
Hydrovolt expects European demand for batteries to grow exponentially as EU countries and Britain transition to electric vehicles.
Some 50 large electric battery factories or “gigafactories” have been announced in Europe in recent years, as the region strives not to become completely dependent on Asian manufacturers in the strategic industry of the future.
Meanwhile, Hydrovolt investor Northvolt said on Tuesday it will slow down its international expansion plans and focus on its existing Swedish battery factory, where scale-up is slower than planned.
The company has a gigafactory project in northern Germany worth several billion euros and another project in Canada expected to cost five billion euros ($5.4 billion). It also has plans for a second Swedish factory.
“In the current situation, we are trying to focus more on the core of our company,” CEO Peter Carlsson said in the business magazine Dagens Industri.
“To move forward in Germany and Montreal it is fundamental that Skelleftea is the parent factory on which the plan rests,” he added.
The first phase of the Skelleftea plant in northern Sweden is expected to reach full production in 2026, instead of initially in 2023. Given that delay, the company must revise its plans, Carlsson said.
He declined to specify a new development calendar, but announced a review of his strategy in September.
The CEO said all Skelleftea production lines should be operational next year and reach full production and profitability by 2026.
The automotive industry has recently been hit by slower growth in demand for electric vehicles and increased competition, which has hit battery projects.
“We were a little too aggressive in our expansion plan and that’s what we’re looking at again,” Carlsson said.
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