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In a step forward for efforts to procure the metals essential to tackling climate change, on Monday a new plant capable of extracting nickel and cobalt from scrap material opens in Fairfield, Ohio. The resulting metals will be used in new batteries and other clean energy markets.
Extracting metals from old material avoids the environmental damage of open pit mining and prevents the metals from going to landfill. Many see this as the future, even if it takes decades to become a reality.
Climate change is mainly caused by the burning of dirty fuels for two general purposes: making electricity and moving vehicles. Batteries can replace both much of the time, but this change is still in its infancy and the need for more minerals is great.
Metals refining company Nth Cycle builds systems that produce nickel and cobalt from shredded lithium ion batteries and nickel scrap from electric vehicles and consumer electronics. There are a growing number of companies, including Redwood Materials and Li-Cycle, that are expanding the young US battery recycling industry.
Currently, even when battery materials are collected for recycling in the United States, they are mostly shipped overseas for refining. Building a traditional metals refinery in the US could cost more than $1 billion, but Nth Cycle uses a modular design that it says is ideal because it can be added to existing manufacturing facilities.
“We have absolutely no refining capacity in the United States for these types of materials,” said Megan O’Connor, CEO of Nth Cycle. “It will not be the first commercial nickel cobalt refinery in the United States, and we are very excited about it.”
Some experts noted the development.
“I think it’s very encouraging to hear that the graduation has reached a stage where this is a potential revenue-making business,” said Shirley Meng, a professor at the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering.
Craig Arnold, an engineering professor and university innovation officer at Princeton University, said this type of development is “huge” for the industry. “If we had a stronger domestic supply of these essential materials, it would absolutely benefit the battery industry,” he said.
Currently the only source of nickel in the United States is the Eagle Mine in Michigan. Ore mined there is shipped internationally for refining.
Demand for critical minerals for battery use is increasing as the world becomes more electrified. The need for nickel for electric vehicles grew by almost 30% in 2023 over the previous year, according to the International Energy Agency. EV battery demand for cobalt increased by 15% in the same period.
Critical minerals are currently being extracted from the Earth from mines in Australia, Indonesia, Congo and Brazil, among other countries. The supply chain is complex, involving an international matrix of labor rights concerns, tribal land conflicts and environmental damage. China is the leading player in minerals essential to energy conversion and is also a leader in battery recycling.
The supply chain can be shaken by geopolitical conflicts and it also emits carbon emissions as materials are transported from country to country. This jeopardizes US battery ambitions, which is why experts say that carrying out more of these processes domestically will make it easier to reach sustainability goals.
The Inflation Reduction Act incentivizes expansion of the battery supply chain in the United States and Nth Cycle received $7.2 million under the law’s Advanced Energy Project Tax Credit (48C) program. The IRA also offers credits for electric vehicles that contain battery materials and components from the United States or a country that has a free trade agreement with the United States.
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