Factorial looks to bring a circular economy to solid-state batteries by recycling lithium-metal
Solid-state battery developer Factorial Energy has announced a new partnership with South Korean metal refining company, Young Poong, to research and implement lithium-metal recycling into its production practices. Through the investment, Factorial hopes to reuse excess metal materials to create a more circular economy.
Factorial Energy, a solid-state battery developer based in Massachusetts, is producing some interesting technology to support EV applications. It currently operates multiple joint ventures with major names in automotive, including Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai Motor Group, and Stellantis.
The company’s flagship product is its Factorial Electrolyte System Technology (FEST) – its own proprietary spin on leveraging a solid electrolyte material. At CES this past January, Factorial Energy unveiled a prototype of a 100 Amp-hour (Ah) solid-state cell that offers compatibility with existing lithium-ion battery manufacturing equipment – encouraging automakers to transition to advanced battery cells via a more seamless process.
In May, the company announced it had been certified to begin shipping those 100 Ah solid-state cells to automakers to test for themselves before they are integrated into new production EV models.
As Factorial Energy works to scale up solid-state battery production and potentially help revolutionize an already booming EV industry, it is working to optimize its production practices by recycling precious lithium metal left behind during the manufacturing process. To do so, the company has recruited the help of Young Poong to adapt its recycling expertise toward solid-state for the first time.
Factorial, Young Poong try first solid-state recycling project
Earlier today, Factorial Energy announced its latest partnership with Young Poong, in which it will provide the South Korean metal smelting and refining company with lithium-metal material left over from its FEST solid-state battery production process.
From there, Young Poong intends to use the excess lithium material to develop a recycling process that enables reusability through integration into additional solid-state batteries, creating a more circular economy. If successful, the companies say they will have achieved an industry first in bringing sustainable recycling to a blossoming solid-state segment.
This is because the lithium-metal anodes used in Factorial’s solid-state batteries require a different recycling process compared to traditional lithium-ion cells used in current EVs. Factorial cofounder and CTO Alex Yu spoke:
Our core mission to advance sustainable mobility extends beyond EV battery manufacturing. We are deeply invested in advancing technologies that foster a circular economy. Through our partnership with Young Poong, Factorial is poised to shape a future characterized by a resilient supply chain for solid-state batteries, thereby helping to drive the growth and sustainability of the EV industry.
Young Poong describes its current battery recycling technique as the world’s first pyrometallurgy process, boasting that it can recover over 90% of lithium and more than 95% of nickel, cobalt, and copper from used batteries. Through its new partnership with Factorial Energy, the company has vowed to invest in the development of a project to adapt a similar recycling process to solid-state. Per representative of Young Poong’s business division and green metal division, Kang In Lee:
We are pleased to be working with Factorial to advance our research into Lithium-metal recycling for solid-state rechargeable batteries, an industry first. With lithium-metal recycling, we have the opportunity to establish a recycling process well in advance of the future decommissioning of solid-state batteries.
To begin, Factorial will provide Young Poong with excess materials from its current solid-state pilot manufacturing process, but the company has already confirmed Young Poong will be present at its future production facilities as the company tries to scale its FEST cells toward full commercialization.
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British Columbia got its first 400 kW DC fast charger last week at Canadian C-store chain On The Run, but that’s not the good part. As part of a limited time offer, these chargers are FREE!
The Canadian convenience store chain just took the wraps off its new, ABB-developed, 400 kW chargers earlier this month, but they’re already planning to bring the ultra-fast 400 kW dispensers to at least four more locations in BC this spring, and have them online just in time for the summer road trip season – something On The Run hopes its customers will appreciate.
“The A400 charger delivers an enhanced customer experience, with reliability and performance from a 32-inch screen to higher power charging sessions and power sharing,” reads the company’s official announcement, via LinkedIn. “Download the Journie Rewards app to start the charge – free for a limited time.”
On The Run’s new 400 kW ABB DC fast chargers are compatible with CCS and CHAdeMO plugs, and can accommodate Tesla and other NACS-equipped vehicles with an adapter. That said, the company seems to imply that Tesla drivers in particular will have a maximum charging speed of “just” 50 kW, which feel hilarious (given the current state of affairs between Tesla and the Canadian government), but probably isn’t.
In addition to the ABB A400 400 kW units shown here, On The Run locations also employ the ABB Terra 184 dispensers rated at 180 kW. On The Run plans similar deployments at the four BC locations mentioned above, as well as two more each in Quebec and Ontario slated to go live towards the end of this year.
Electrek’s Take
Tesla’s controversial CEO Elon Musk once mocked 350 kW charging speed as being “for a child’s toy,” despite the fact that, nearly nine years later, his own cars and Superchargers can barely make it to 325 kW while others have sailed right on past. I made fun of that fact on the Quick Charge episode shown, above – and, while I do think it’s funny and relevant, the much more relevant piece of news here is that companies like BP Pulse, Revel, and Wallbox are actively deploying 400 kW solutions, today (while others hit the same mark as far back as 2017).
It’s just a fact: Tesla has fallen way behind.
SOURCE | IMAGES: On The Run, via Electric Autonomy.
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Terawatt Infrastructure‘s first medium- and heavy-duty electric charging truck stop in California is now online, in Rancho Dominguez.
Located 12 miles north of the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, the private Rancho Dominguez site, which is shared among multiple fleets, will support electric trucking fleet operations in and out of the largest container ports in the US.
First customers include Dreaded Trucking, Hight Logistics, PepsiCo, Quick Container Drayage, Southern Counties Express, Tradelink Transport, and WestCoast Trucking & Warehousing.
Terawatt’s electric charging truck stop features 20 pull-through and bobtail DC fast charging stalls with a capacity of 7 megawatts (MW), enabling charging for up to 125 trucks per day using a simple reservations system. Terawatt’s site features a proprietary charge management system, in-house technicians, 24/7 customer service, and onsite parts management.
“This launch underscores growing collaboration between enterprises, shippers, carriers, and charging infrastructure providers to advance sustainable technologies across logistics and transportation operations, especially in the medium and heavy-duty sectors,” said Neha Palmer, CEO and cofounder of Terawatt. Palmer added that the company will bring another charging site online in Rialto, California, in June.
Terawatt joined some of the world’s largest shippers and carriers in September 2024 to launch the I-10 Consortium heavy-duty EV operations pilot, the “first-ever US over-the-road electrified corridor.” Terawatt is providing charging infrastructure, including software, operations, and maintenance support at six of its owned charging hubs along the I-10 corridor.
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In its most aggressive attack against offshore wind yet, the Trump administration halted the $5 billion Empire Wind 1, already under construction off New York’s coast.
Norwegian developer Equinor announced yesterday that it received notice from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) ordering Empire Wind 1 to halt all activities on the outer continental shelf until BOEM has completed its review. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum posted this tweet yesterday:
Burgum gave no indication of what insufficiencies there were in the approval process for the fully permitted offshore wind project, despite Trump’s recent declaration of a national energy emergency that speeds up permitting processes.
The commercial lease for the 810-megawatt (MW) Empire Wind 1’s federal offshore wind area was signed in March 2017 during the first Trump administration. It was approved by the Biden administration in November 2023 and began construction in 2024.
The project is being developed under contract with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Empire Wind 1, which was due to come online in 2027, has the potential to power 500,000 New York homes.
“Halting construction of fully permitted energy projects is the literal opposite of an energy abundance agenda,” said American Clean Power Association CEO Jason Grumet in a statement. “We encourage the administration to quickly address perceived inadequacies in the prior permit approvals so that this project can complete construction and bring much-needed power to the grid.”
As Electrek reported, Equinor secured $3 billion to finance Empire Wind 1 in January. The total amount drawn under the project finance term loan facility as of March 31 was around $1.5 billion.
As of March 31, Empire Wind has a gross book value of around $2.5 billion, including South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (pictured above), which was expected to become the US’s largest dedicated port facility for offshore wind.
In response to BOEM’s stop work order, New York Governor Kathy Hochul issued the following statement:
Every single day, I’m working to make energy more affordable, reliable and abundant in New York and the federal government should be supporting those efforts rather than undermining them. Empire Wind 1 is already employing hundreds of New Yorkers, including 1,000 good-paying union jobs as part of a growing sector that has already spurred significant economic development and private investment throughout the state and beyond.
As Governor, I will not allow this federal overreach to stand. I will fight this every step of the way to protect union jobs, affordable energy and New York’s economic future.
Equinor says it’s considering appealing BOEM’s order.
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