Japanese investor Marubeni Corporation has pledged $5m (£4.1m) to support clean-energy technology firm Altilium’s bid to create a circular economy for electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
The funding came in a Series B funding round and marks a milestone in the Plymouth-based company’s ambitious journey.
Altilium is currently building its first commercial plant in Devon and plans to create one of the largest EV-battery recycling facilities in Europe on Teesside.
The firm last year secured more than £600,000 from government agency Innovate UK to help it carry out production of lithium-ion cells from cathode active materials (CAM).
Altilium completed its Series A funding round with a $12m investment from SQM Lithium Ventures, part of production giant Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile.
Marubeni’s cash will support the next stage of developing the proposed Teesside facility, which will include detailed engineering studies, land acquisition, planning and permitting and recruitment of key leaders.
Once operational, the plant could have capacity to process battery waste from 150,000 EVs per year.
Altilium chief executive Kamran Mahdavi said of the Japanese firm’s involvement: “This partnership marks a major milestone in establishing a truly circular economy for the UK’s battery industry.”
