The U.S. and Europe are facing significant challenges regarding nickel, a key mineral essential for a range of applications from batteries to electronics and steel. Unfortunately, both regions have struggled with mining and refining nickel due to complex permitting processes and environmental concerns.
Currently, Indonesia and China dominate the nickel refining market, with Chinese enterprises controlling about 75% of this capacity in Indonesia alone, which significantly contributes to their overall global supply dominance. As tensions between the U.S. and China rise, American companies are beginning to explore domestic refining options. Megan O’Connor, the co-founder and CEO of Nth Cycle, shared insights on this shift during a recent TechCrunch interview.
Nth Cycle is developing an innovative electrochemical system for nickel and other critical mineral refining, including cobalt and rare earth metals. Just over a year after commencing operations at its Ohio facility, which can handle 3,100 metric tons of scrap, Nth Cycle secured a significant $1.1 billion deal with commodity trader Trafigura to enhance its production capacity.
This development reflects a notable trend in how businesses are reassessing their metal supply chains and the role of technology within them. Currently, not only is metal refining predominantly overseas, but recycling also follows suit, with spent batteries often sent abroad for processing. O’Connor remarked on the lost value in such practices, indicating that the U.S. is relinquishing valuable resources while having to import them back after processing.
Another player in the field, Westwin Elements, is also attempting local refining through its Oklahoma facility and plans for an expansion in Georgia, albeit facing some opposition.
Nth Cycle proposes a solution with its modular and electric refining system, designed to be more efficient and less capital-intensive than traditional facilities commonly found in Asia. By working with recyclers for black mass—the metal mix sourced from shredded batteries—alongside catalysts from the oil and gas sector, this system can reduce costs and enable profitability at much lower processing volumes, at around 6,000 metric tons per year.
This low threshold is essential, especially as the anticipated surge in electric vehicle batteries that require recycling is not expected until later in the decade. Redwood Materials, a notable entity in battery recycling, has even opted to focus on extending the life of old batteries instead of recycling them.
Confident in the U.S. and European supply of raw materials, O’Connor highlighted Nth Cycle’s plans for new facilities in South Carolina and the Netherlands, expected to process a combined 18,000 metric tons of scrap. The company’s approach allows for flexibility in refining processes as material compositions evolve.
O’Connor concluded that scaling operations efficiently is vital for building refining capacity in the U.S. by aligning production with the growing volume of battery waste, thus ensuring a more sustainable and local supply chain in the future.
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