March 9, 2023: Mercedes-Benz held a groundbreaking ceremony on March 3 for an EV battery recycling manufacturing unit in Kuppenheim, Germany.
The auto big mentioned that the primary stage of the plant, the mechanical dismantling of the batteries, is scheduled to start out ramping up by the tip of this 12 months.
A hydrometallurgy pilot plant shall be arrange a couple of months later, “topic to the end result of promising discussions with the general public sector”.
The pilot plant is anticipated to have an annual capability of two,500 tons, with recovered supplies returned to the recycling loop to supply greater than 50,000 battery modules for brand spanking new Mercedes-Benz fashions. .
In response to the corporate, all recycling operations shall be built-in inside one manufacturing unit, which it claims is exclusive in Europe.
Mercedes-Benz didn’t disclose monetary particulars however mentioned Germany’s federal economic system and local weather safety ministry funded the plant as a part of a scientific analysis challenge.
The automobile firm mentioned it invested “a double-digit million euro quantity within the building of the balanced CO2-neutral plant”.
Kuppenheim will ultimately cowl each step of the recycling course of, from dismantling on the module stage to shredding, drying and processing battery-grade supplies, the corporate mentioned.
The hydrometallurgy course of goals to have a supplies restoration price of greater than 96%, the corporate claims.
Mercedes-Benz is collaborating on the challenge with expertise associate Primobius, a three way partnership between German mechanical engineering firm SMS and Australia’s Neometals.
Journal of Power Storage It was reported final 12 months that main automakers are additionally driving the momentum within the manufacturing of battery cells in Europe – in line with evaluation revealed in February by CIC energiGUNE.
Pictured from left: Jörg Burzer (member of the board of administration of the Mercedes-Benz Group for manufacturing and provide chain administration), Thekla Walker (minister for the surroundings, local weather safety and power sector Baden-Württemberg) and Michael Brecht (chairman of the works council of the joint operation Gaggenau, to which the Kuppenheim plant belongs). Photograph: Mercedes-Benz