Lithium Australia has invested a further $100,000 in Envirostream Australia, increasing its equity from 18.9 to 23.9 per cent.
According to a Lithium Australia statement, the investment significantly enhances the company’s exposure to the process of collecting and separating spent lithium-ion batteries, a fundamental precursor to battery chemical recycling.
“Lithium Australia has already, at a laboratory scale, successfully recovered metals from separated batteries, used the lithium retrieved to regenerate cathode materials and, from those materials, manufactured coin-cell lithium-ion batteries,” the statement reads.
Lithium Australia Managing Director Arian Griffin said Envirostream is the only company in Australia with the integrated capacity to collect, sort, shred and separate all the components of lithium-ion batteries.
“Lithium Australia’s expanded equity in Envirostream, and acceleration of its research and development program, both anticipate the restructuring of the recycling business to best amalgamate the capabilities of both Lithium Australia and Envirostream,” Mr Griffin said.
“Envirostream’s infrastructure is essential to developing an environmentally responsible solution to the mounting problems spent lithium-ion batteries represent.”
Mr Griffin said by recycling spent lithium-ion batteries, Lithium Australia hopes to meet the ethical, social and governance standards that Australian’s have come to expect.
“The world’s capacity to deal with climate change is also bolstered by the resulting improvements in resource sustainability and reductions in the environmental footprint of portable power,” Mr Griffin said.
“Our further investment in recycling in general, and Envirostream in particular, therefore represents a tremendous opportunity for the company.”
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