LICO Materials Private Limited is a battery recycling company with a focus on recycling end of life lithium-ion batteries. It was established in October 2021, and ever since LICO has always aimed at creating a sustainable circular economy in the lithium-ion battery supply chain for the recovery of crucial materials that can be used again. The dismantling process leads to lithium recovery, cobalt recovery, manganese and nickel. These are supplied to the battery manufacturers for reuse while making new batteries further reducing the e-waste.
LICO’s vision is to be one of the successful battery recycling companies in India which aims to give back to the environment and contribute to a sustainable living. Focused on lithium-ion battery recycling, LICO wants to create a green circular economy for years to come in this world.
LICO has commissioned its first battery recycling plant and shredding plant with a capacity of 1500 Metric Tons per annum in Q2 2022 at the Mumbai factory. This battery recycling plant uses scalable and standard equipment to separate plastics, copper and aluminium foils and black mass. The black mass-produced contains critical materials like lithium, cobalt, manganese and nickel.
LICO has joined hands with a sustainable technology provider to set up 2 battery recycling plants in Southern India with a combined capacity of 6000 Metric Tons per annum. This plant uses proprietary hydrometallurgy technology to recover the critical metals from the black mass-produced during shredding.
The idea behind e-waste recycling is to give these used batteries a second life and reduce the amount of battery waste gathered each day. This eco-friendly recycling process separates the essential parts of batteries that are sold back to battery manufacturers for another use. Recent studies show that the recycling of batteries is extremely necessary, and if they are not recycled, then landfill sites may become full of batteries in the future. With electric cars becoming more practically available in the marketplace, the need for battery recycling has never been more significant. Since the batteries are used in a huge number, recycling is very important.
Let’s look into why LICO’s vision is focused on recycling batteries. Do you know what happens to the batteries dumped in the landfills? They begin to break down. When these batteries become corroded or damaged, they start to seep chemicals into the soil, and could possibly find their way into the water bodies. These emitted materials are not only harmful to the environment but also to mankind.
Materials like lithium-ion, lead-acid and cadmium are among the most dangerous environmental pollutants. If not recycled thoroughly they could end up in the food you consume. When these metals are separated for recycle and reuse, it protects the health of humankind and the environment. This is exactly what LICO aims to do!
Battery manufacturing companies use raw-earth materials like nickel, lithium, cobalt, and lead to name a few, to create new batteries. The problem is these materials are expensive to mine and non-renewable. The increasing use of batteries and their necessity mean that more of these materials are in demand. The mining process can result in the release of multiple toxic particles into the environment. LICO’s aim of recycling your used batteries means you conserve resources while reducing the ever-growing need for these raw materials.
As a result, LICO’s recycling process conserves resources, contributes to the economy and reduces pollution all in one go, making it a part of a bigger goal in the future.
