This week, Heritage Battery Recycling announced plans to construct a new lithium-ion battery recycling facility in Eloy, Arizona. Heritage Battery Recycling is an affiliate of Cirba Solutions, a comprehensive cross-chemistry battery management and materials processor and a leader in the industry for the past thirty years.
The Eloy facility complements Cirba Solutions’ existing facility in Mesa, and will process lithium-ion end-of-life batteries and battery manufacturing scrap as well as provide additional services including disassembly, sorting, warehousing, and diagnostic testing. The end products from the facility will then serve as raw material for new cathode and battery manufacturing and help to close the domestic materials supply gap needed to support the growth of the electric vehicles market and increased need for battery recycling services.
Of the announcement, Sandra Watson, President and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority, said, "This new EV battery recycling facility bolsters Arizona’s vibrant battery and electric vehicle supply chain and furthers Arizona’s reputation as an epicenter for lithium batteries. The innovative facility will produce battery materials to support the continued growth of electric vehicle manufacturers across Arizona and the United States. Arizona continues to be a magnet for technology and advanced industries.”
“The lithium-ion battery market is expected to grow exponentially over the next several years, with a projected market size approaching $25 billion by 2028,” Cirba Solutions President and CEO David Klanecky says. “Federal incentives for the purchase of EVs, requirements for domestic EV battery manufacturing included in the Inflation Reduction Act and state requirements like California’s recent move to require all new vehicles sold in the state to be zero-emission by 2035, ensure that lithium-ion battery recycling will be critical for auto manufacturers to meet demand and have a sustainable future.”
Pinal County, where the new facility will be located, is a burgeoning hub for electric vehicle manufacturing with both Lucid Motors and Nikola Motors also located there. The addition of the Heritage Battery Recycling facility further positions Arizona to meet growing regional and national demands for electric vehicles, which rely on lithium ion batteries, in an environmentally responsible way.
The facility, which will occupy more than 75,000 square feet, is estimated to provide 110 jobs in Eloy once construction is complete. The company expects to be fully operational by mid-2023 and will process enough battery material to support 50,000 EVs annually.