Hydrovolt and Fortum Battery Recycling join forces to drive the Nordic battery industry forward
The two companies have signed an agreement on the delivery of black mass to Fortum’s battery material recycling plant in Finland. To facilitate clean electrification, collaborations similar to Hydrovolt and Fortum Battery Recycling are needed to drive the battery recycling industry forward.
The need to recycle batteries is ever increasing – the new EU sustainable batteries regulation requires battery, electronics, and automotive manufacturers to gradually increase the amount of recycled materials in batteries.
The scope of the collaboration intends to deliver on these new requirements and include a cross-Nordic process by mechanical recycling of EV batteries performed at Hydrovolt’s industrial plant in Fredrikstad, Norway. After crushing the batteries and turned into black mass, the material is shipped to Fortum’s hydrometallurgical plant in Harjavalta, Finland for further processing.
At Harjavalta, the hydrometallurgical process recovers valuable and critical metals from the black mass. Eventually the materials are returned to the cycle and reenters the battery manufacturing process of new lithium-ion batteries.
We are thrilled to enter into partnership with an innovative and strong actor such as Fortum Battery Recycling. This collaboration is a great example of how we can create circular solutions paving the way for more sustainable practices in the industry. Together, we set a leading example in the Nordics, championing sustainable battery recycling and closed loop systems for securing critical raw materials
Ole-Christen Enger, CEO of Hydrovolt
The agreement is the first commercial agreement for black mass offtake between the actors in an emerging market with large potential within the battery industry. The collaboration between Hydrovolt and Fortum Battery Recycling supports the companies’ shared targets of innovating the lithium-ion battery value chain for EV and industrial batteries. The unique dry-environment recycling process of Hydrovolt offers enhanced security and cleaner output.
We are excited to have started this partnership with Hydrovolt, another pioneer in the battery recycling industry. It is important to us to work with partners that share the same vision as we do – providing safe, cost-effective, and sustainable services for battery handling. Together, we can drive the battery industry forward with more efficient and sustainable solutions while also promoting Nordic collaboration and knowhow
Tero Holländer, Head of Fortum Battery Recycling
Contact:
Amanda Gran
Head of Communication & Public Affairs, Hydrovolt
+47 90560611 | amanda.gran@hydrovolt.com
Heli Poikonen
Director, Communications and Marketing, Fortum Recycling & Waste
+358 50 3794 119 | heli.poikonen@fortum.com
Fact box: Black Mass
Black mass is a powder recovered from the active battery components containing materials like lithium, nickel, manganese, cobalt, and graphite. A hydrometallurgical treatment process is required to transform the black mass into battery-grade materials that can be used in producing new batteries with the highest possible recycled content and lowest environmental footprint.
About Fortum & Fortum Battery Recycling
Fortum is a Nordic energy company. Our purpose is to power a world where people, businesses and nature thrive together. We are one of the cleanest energy producers in Europe and our actions are guided by our ambitious environmental targets. We generate and deliver clean energy reliably and help industries to decarbonise their processes and grow. Our core operations in the Nordics comprise efficient, CO2-free power generation as well as reliable supply of electricity and district heat to private and business customers. For our ~5 000 employees, we commit to be a safe and inspiring workplace. Fortum's share is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki. fortum.com Fortum Battery Recycling offers recycling services for lithium-ion batteries and battery production waste, and recovers valuable battery metals to produce sustainable recycled raw materials for reuse. We have Europe’s largest closed-loop hydrometallurgical battery recycling facility in Harjavalta, Finland and pretreatment and mechanical operations hubs in Germany and in Finland.