ACE Green Recycling (ACE) has signed a $12 million equipment supply and licencing deal spanning 10 years with India’s Pondy Oxides & Chemicals Ltd to set up the world’s largest greenhouse gas (GHG) emission-free battery recycling facility in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh, India. The green technology start-up will licence its proprietary zero-emission lead battery recycling technology to India’s leading lead battery recycling company to recycle 40,000 tons of batteries, which translates to around $60 million every year.
POCL has been in the metals, chemicals and battery recycling business for more than 27 years and is India’s first and only 3N7 Lead Brand registered on the London Metal Exchange (LME).
Traditionally, lead-acid battery recycling is via the smelting process, which involves operating temperatures of more than 1,000oC producing significant GHG emissions. Compared to smelting, ACE’s recycling technology operates at room temperature, runs using electricity, produces zero GHG, releases oxygen into the air, and minimises solid waste by more than 80%. The only process where ACE’s technology needs any external heat is during the final melting to make lead ingots. ACE has also developed solar-powered electric kettles to avoid the usage of any fossil fuel.
This technology will reduce the carbon footprint on a global scale as POCL exports their products to international customers in South Korea, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, the Middle East, the US and Europe. The lead-acid battery is a key element in the automotive industry while also playing a crucial role in the renewable power storage and telecommunications industry.
“As a leading global player and pioneer in Asia’s battery recycling facility industry, POCL is constantly investing in R&D and keeping abreast of the latest technologies to be in step with the industry and our customers’ ever-changing needs,” said Ashish Bansal, Managing Director, POCL. “ACE’s breakthrough technology will help us to stay ahead of the competition and at the same time positively contribute to making the global electrification drive climate positive.”
“Our collaboration with ACE is a positive headway into the green technology space. POCL endeavours to become the torchbearer of circular economy in India and be synonymous with recycling at every juncture,” said K Kumaravel, Director of Finance, POCL.
ACE’s technology deployment at POCL is expected to start operations in Q4 of 2022 and will be scaled up in phases. Over ten years, the 30,000 sqm facility is projected to recycle more than 28 million lead-acid batteries, prevent the emission of 500 million kg of GHG, prevent 40 million kg of solid waste from going into landfills, produce 17 million kg of oxygen enough for 55,000 people, recycle 28 million kg of plastic, and provide green jobs for the community. Longer-term, POCL plans to utilise solar power for the facility, thereby also reducing its Scope 2 GHG emissions.
“We are excited to be partnering with POCL in helping them to improve their environmental footprint and provide a safer workplace for their employees,” said Vipin Tyagi, Co-founder & CTO, ACE. “Our world-class and fully automated lead-battery recycling technology increases lead recovery and is more cost-efficient than smelting while mitigating lead exposure to the surrounding communities. This partnership is the first major step to help decarbonise the global lead recycling industry, and we look forward to a mutually beneficial partnership with POCL.”
“As the electric vehicle industry grows globally, there is a huge demand for an environmentally-friendly battery recycling solution as the world’s population pushes towards more sustainable and efficient consumption and production,” said Nishchay Chadha, Co-founder & CEO, ACE. “We are also close to commercially developing our lithium-ion battery recycling technology and we believe our solutions will be a game-changer in the battery recycling industry and contribute to making global electrification sustainable.”
ACE aims to be an industry leader in the next five years and has so far raised $10 million with the latest funding round led by Circulate Capital. The company is expanding its team from 30 to 50 people, split between their three offices in India, the US, and Singapore.
