Finding
Recycling is a Chinese refining business fed by factory scrap
China held about 78% of pre-treatment capacity and 89% of black mass refining in 2025 (Rho Motion). Most plants elsewhere only shred: in Europe 28 of 38 operational sites stop at black mass, which is then shipped to Asia for refining.
The feed is mostly not old EVs yet. Until about 2028 the main input is scrap from cell factories - off-spec electrodes and rejected cells - and most of that is in China because most cells are made there. Retired EV and storage packs overtake scrap later in the decade as the first large EV fleets age out.
That makes recycling capacity a function of cell-making capacity. A Western recycler needs a nearby gigafactory for scrap now and a collection network for packs later, and it needs its own refining step to keep the metal at home. IEA estimates about two-thirds of recycling capacity growth since 2020 was in China.
Process
From pack to battery-grade salt
Pre-treatment ends at black mass. Refining turns black mass into salts a cathode plant can use. Only refining keeps the metal in the region.
| Step | Equipment | Output |
|---|---|---|
| Discharge and dismantle | Robots, torque tools, HV disconnects | Packs to modules and cells |
| Shred and separate | Shredders, sieves, eddy-current separators | Black mass plus copper, aluminum, plastics |
| Pyrometallurgy | Electric and induction furnaces | Nickel-cobalt-copper alloy; lithium often lost to slag |
| Hydrometallurgy | Leach tanks, solvent extraction, crystallizers | Lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese salts |
| Direct recycling (emerging) | Relithiation reactors, ovens | Cathode material reused intact |
Plants
Largest operating recycling plants
The 12 largest operating recyclers in the ElectronsX dataset by nameplate input in tons per year. Output shows where each plant stops: of 38 operating recyclers tracked, 13 stop at black mass. Chinese figures are plant-level disclosures and likely understate group capacity. Every site, including second-life operators, is in the recycling facility directory.
| Operator and plant | Location | Process | Output | t/yr | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jingmen Recycling Hub (GEM (Green Eco-Manufacture)) | Jingmen, China | hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 100,000 | operational |
| Yichang Recycling Base (Brunp Recycling (CATL subsidiary)) | Yichang, China | mechanical + hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 80,000 | operational |
| McCarran Nevada Campus (Redwood Materials) | McCarran, USA | mechanical + hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 60,000 | operational |
| Tongxiang Recycling Division (Huayou Cobalt Recycling) | Tongxiang, China | hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 50,000 | operational |
| Xinyu Recycling Plant (Ganfeng Lithium Recycling) | Xinyu, China | hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 30,000 | operational |
| Gunsan Recycling Plant (SungEel HiTech) | Gunsan, South Korea | hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 30,000 | operational |
| Multiple EU Sites (Veolia) | Limburg, Belgium, France | mechanical + hydrometallurgy | black mass | 25,000 | operational |
| Fernley Nevada Plant (ABTC) | McCarran, USA | hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 20,000 | operational |
| Lancaster and US Plants (Cirba Solutions) | Lancaster, USA | mechanical + hydrometallurgy | black mass | 20,000 | operational |
| Cheongju Recycling Plant (EcoPro CnG) | Pohang, South Korea | hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 20,000 | operational |
| South Carolina Campus (Redwood Materials) | Ridgeville, USA | mechanical + hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 20,000 | operational |
| Viviez Recycling Plant (SNAM) | Viviez, France | pyrometallurgy + hydrometallurgy | battery-grade salts | 20,000 | operational |
Sources
Sources and scope
- Dataset
- Battery recycling and second-life sites: operator, location, type, process, chemistry, outputs, capacity, status, partners
- Sources
- Rho Motion Battery Recycling Forecast; IEA Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2025; SMM
- Updated
- October 2026