BASF has successfully started the commercial operation of its Black Mass plant in Schwarzheide, Germany. This state-of-the-art facility represents a significant milestone for BASF’s battery recycling business. It is one of the biggest commercial Black Mass plants in Europe, with an annual processing capacity of up to 15,000 tons of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and production scrap. This equals roughly 40,000 electric vehicle batteries per year.

The successful start of the commercial operation of this plant therefore marks an important step for the European battery industry. Battery recycling is a key factor in increasing independence from primary raw material sources and meeting the ambitious requirements of circular economy policies. Black mass production is a key step in the battery recycling process and is based on mechanical treatment of the batteries.

The Black Mass contains high amounts of key metals used to produce cathode active materials (CAM): lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese. These valuable metals can be chemically recovered and used to produce new CAM, enabling circularity and reducing the carbon footprint compared to using only primary raw materials.

“Our new Black Mass plant is another proof for our commitment to the Battery Materials and Recycling industry, which remains to be one of the most significant growth opportunities in the chemical industry and for BASF Battery Materials. It will become a cornerstone of our offerings to our customers to increase raw materials self-sufficiency and comply with the EU Battery Regulation,” said Dr. Daniel Schönfelder, President of BASF’s Battery Materials division.

“With the new Black Mass plant, we strengthen our position as the preferred battery recycling partner for customers along the entire battery recycling value chain in Europe.”