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Technology Minerals Plc (LSE: TM1), the first listed UK company focused on creating a sustainable circular economy for battery metals is pleased to announce that its 49% owned battery recycling business, Recyclus Group Ltd (“Recyclus”), has opened its first lead-acid battery recycling plant in Tipton, West Midlands, and will commence operations on the week commencing 7^th February 2022.

The Tipton plant aims to increase Recyclus’ lead-acid battery recycling production capacity from an estimated 16,000 tonnes in the first full year of production, to circa 80,000 tonnes by 2027.  

The opening of the plant represents a significant milestone for Recyclus, and it aims to follow up this achievement with the opening of a new lithium-ion recycling facility in Wolverhampton, forecast to open in February. Recyclus looks forward to providing an update on the progress of the lithium plant shortly.

The Tipton plant is designed to process up to 12 tonnes an hour of all types of lead-acid batteries (“LAB”) and will have a fully automated, modular system, that is capable of recycling lead-acid batteries without any gas or particle emissions going into the atmosphere.

The process breaks down the entire battery into separate constituent parts, to ensure it is fully recycled and recovers lead, acid, and plastic materials. These can be re-used to support a wide range of industries. The hard lead can be used in grids and terminals, the soft lead for battery paste and the sulphuric acid can be turned into fertilisers for agricultural use, electrolytes, or turned into gypsum for fibre board construction.

By mechanising a previously manual process for lead-acid battery recycling, Recyclus can prioritise the safety and sustainability of our recycling processes, to ensure that Recyclus is taking a responsible approach to battery recycling.

The opening of the new plant comes only weeks after Recyclus announced the opening of its first laboratory, facilitating in-house testing for lead-acid and lithium-ion battery recycling processes.

Robin Brundle, Chairman of Technology Minerals, said: “With the opening of the lead-acid plant at Tipton, Recyclus are industrialising and mechanising a long-established industry that has traditionally been very labour intensive. The efficiencies of the plant – combined with Recyclus’ processes – really modernise the sector and will assist in reducing the number of batteries that are either incinerated or, worse still, sent to landfill.

“The UK has been in dire need of industrial-scale battery recycling technologies and the opening of this new plant at Tipton will help to provide a national capability to recycle lead-acid batteries. This is the first of ten plants Recyclus expects to open over the next six years to be a first mover in the battery recycling sector with its innovative IP in the Li-ion sector a driving factor in its expansion strategy.”

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