LICO Materials has developed a pathway to recover graphite from end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and battery manufacturing scrap and supply the recovered material to Epsilon Advanced Materials (EAM) for use as secondary feedstock in graphite anode materials.
LICO says it is the first company in India to recover graphite from end-of-life batteries and cell manufacturing scrap for supply to EAM. The initiative links LICO’s critical mineral recovery processes with EAM’s anode material production, creating a route for recovered graphite to be reintroduced into battery material production.
Graphite accounts for approximately 20-30 percent of a lithium-ion battery’s weight and is a key material for battery anodes. The release notes that China accounts for more than 90 percent of global graphite refining, around 80 percent of mining and more than 90 percent of anode active material production. The International Energy Agency expects China to supply around 80 percent of battery-grade graphite in 2035.
India’s Graphite Demand And Battery Manufacturing
India’s graphite requirements are expected to increase alongside domestic battery manufacturing. According to figures cited from the Ministry of Heavy Industries, lithium-ion battery demand in India is expected to reach 210 GWh by 2030, requiring an estimated 200,000-230,000 tonnes of graphite anode material annually.
Recovering graphite from end-of-life batteries and cell manufacturing scrap could provide an additional feedstock source alongside virgin and imported material. LICO said the process is intended to retain graphite already present within the battery ecosystem and return it to production.
Recovered Graphite To Undergo Processing And Qualification
LICO will recover the graphite using its critical mineral recovery processes before supplying the material to EAM. EAM will then process and qualify the recovered graphite for use as secondary feedstock within its graphite anode materials platform.
Following internal development and testing, samples are expected to be made available for customer validation by the end of 2026.
EAM manufactures synthetic, natural and blended graphite anode materials for lithium-ion battery applications, including electric vehicles and battery energy storage systems. The recovered material will provide an additional feedstock stream for its anode material operations.
EAM managing director Vikram Handa said the recovered graphite will complement conventional feedstocks and provide a route for material from used batteries to be returned to advanced anode material production.
The two companies are therefore developing a closed-loop route in which graphite recovered from end-of-life batteries and manufacturing scrap can be reintroduced into the production of graphite anode materials.