. It’s cited by industry analysts as one of two or three companies outside Asia best positioned to capture value from the predicted flood of used electric-vehicle batteries in the decades ahead.
Mr. Frost, left and Mr. Carrey sort batteries on a conveyer at the Kingston battery recycling facility.During a lengthy interview, Li-Cycle chief executive officer Ajay Kochhar made clear how much hinges on the Rochester project – which the company, with a current net worth around $1.3-billion, expects will allow it to become profitable.
The challenge for companies jockeying for position in that future market, which has informed Li-Cycle’s strategy, is that for now they’re literally fighting for scraps. The other overarching aim in quickly getting those sites off the ground has been building credibility with automakers , battery makers and others who supply recyclable materials and in some cases could become customers for recovered minerals.
Li-Cycle contends that its processes are agnostic enough to withstand EV-making evolutions, such as a possible shift from lithium-ion to lithium iron phosphate batteries, which have different compositions that don’t involve nickel or cobalt.He acknowledged that more revolutionary shifts – such as widespread adoption of, which have dramatically different chemistry – could pose more of a challenge. But Li-Cycle is already building IP to confront that prospect, he said.