Poland builds first recycling plant for car batteries in EU with EBRD financing

• EBRD loan of up to €25 mn to support construction of pioneering recycling plant
• Elemental Holding S.A. facility will treat spent lithium-ion batteries and auto catalysts
• First plant in the EU and one of the first in the world

Poland will become the site of the first recycling facility in the European Union targeted at the rapid rise of electric vehicles with the help of a loan of up to €25 million provided by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

The EBRD financing to Elemental Holding S.A. will be part of a €182 million package raised to finance the construction of the first recycling facility in the EU and one of the first in the world to treat spent lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and auto catalysts containing platinum group metals.

Elemental Holding S.A. is headquartered in the south west of Warsaw and listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.

The new facility will produce secondary metals and other materials than can be reused as raw materials for new batteries and other applications, providing an essential service in the lithium-ion batteries value chain. These batteries are a core component of electric vehicles which are forecast to overtake the sale of cars powered by internal combustion engines by 2040.

The plant will be designed to recycle waste critical for e-mobility, mainly platinum group metals from auto catalysts, as well as from polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells used in hydrogen-powered vehicles. Its capacity will be up to 4,000 tons of spent batteries and up to 4,000 tons of auto catalysts. The facility will be interchangeable between batteries and auto-catalysts, combining traditional with future car technology.

[EBRD quote] “This is an outstanding example of how new technology and progress with the green economy are coming hand in hand. The EBRD is actively supporting Poland’s ambitious agenda to become a low carbon economy and this is an investment which is both pioneering and exemplary.”

[Client quote]

To date, the EBRD has invested €10.8 billion in 456 projects in Poland. The Bank is a leading investor in the renewable sector and has previously also co-financed two battery investments for electric vehicles in the country.