Yeongpung Signs Resource Circulation Agreement with US Battery Manufacturer Factorial

Sim Tae-jun and Elex U Sign MOU

‘Yeongpung’ is collaborating with the US battery manufacturer ‘Factorial, Inc.’ in the field of resource recycling for key secondary battery materials.

Factorial is a specialized company in solid-state batteries, known as the next-generation ‘dream battery,’ and the resource recycling business agreement between the two companies for solid-state batteries is the first of its kind in the global secondary battery industry.

On the 26th, Yeongpung signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Factorial at Yeongpung’s headquarters in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, to cooperate in the secondary battery resource recycling business.

Executive Director Shim Tae-jun of Youngpoong (left in the photo) and Alex Yoo, CTO of Factorial, are posing for a commemorative photo after signing a business agreement.

The MOU signing ceremony was attended by Yeongpung Executive Director Shim Tae-jun, Factorial CTO Alex Yu, and executives and staff from both companies.

Factorial, headquartered in the US, is currently operating a pilot solid-state battery production line in Cheonan, Chungnam. According to the agreement, Factorial will supply battery process scrap generated from the pilot line to Yeongpung, and Yeongpung will jointly promote a business to recycle the battery process scrap into reusable resources.

In the future, Factorial’s battery factory in Woburn, Massachusetts, USA, will also collaborate with Yeongpung in the field of resource recycling for key secondary battery materials.

Through this, Yeongpung will gain a technological competitive edge as the first in the global secondary battery recycling industry to process not only existing ternary (NCM/NCA) batteries and lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries but also next-generation solid-state batteries.

Since 1970, Yeongpung has possessed world-class non-ferrous metal smelting and refining technology through active technology adoption and R&D investment, and based on this technology, it is developing an ‘integrated dry and wet resource recycling process’ for secondary battery recycling.

The integrated dry and wet resource recycling process is known as Yeongpung’s unique resource recycling technology that, for the first time in the world, collects and recovers lithium (Li) in a dry process, then treats the concentrated intermediate materials in a wet process to recover key secondary battery material minerals such as nickel (Ni), lithium (Li), and cobalt (Co).

Through Yeongpung’s integrated dry and wet resource recycling process, Factorial can recover key battery materials such as lithium from battery process scrap generated at its factory, thereby reducing costs and enhancing the stability of raw material supply.

Yeongpung President Lee Kang-in said, “Through this agreement, we have acquired the capability to respond to the raw material market not only for existing secondary batteries but also for next-generation batteries including solid-state batteries. We will efficiently and smoothly promote joint projects between the two companies and strengthen our competitiveness.”

Seokpo Smelter in Bonghwa, Gyeongbuk, operated by Youngpoong.

Factorial CTO Alex Yu said, “Factorial pursues sustainable development of mobility beyond battery manufacturing and invests in advanced technologies to activate the battery circular economy. Through cooperation with Yeongpung, we will play a key role in leading the growth and sustainability of the EV industry by establishing a stable supply chain for solid-state batteries.”

Solid-state batteries are expected to be a ‘game changer’ in next-generation batteries by replacing electrolytes with solid materials. Compared to liquid electrolytes, they are more stable, have a lower risk of fire in case of accidents, and reduce volume and cost.

Compared to existing NCM batteries, they can store more energy in the same size, charge faster, and have a longer lifespan by reducing corrosion during charging. Thus, solid-state batteries are called the next-generation dream battery and are expected to form a market size of $40 billion by 2030.

The government has announced a plan to invest 20 trillion KRW jointly by the public and private sectors in solid-state battery research and development by 2030. Major domestic battery manufacturers are also actively developing technology and commercializing by building vertically integrated supply chains including solid-state production lines.

Yeongpung is promoting the secondary battery resource recycling business as a new business, having completed a pilot plant for a national project using a dry melting method in 2022 and successfully recovering lithium through a dry process for the first time in the world, conducting process commissioning.

Yeongpung’s secondary battery resource recycling technology is an integrated dry and wet method that achieves a world-leading recovery rate of over 90% for lithium and over 95% for nickel, cobalt, and copper from used batteries.

Factorial, headquartered in Massachusetts, USA, is a solid-state battery development company that has signed joint development contracts with major global automakers and operates a pilot plant for electric vehicle solid-state batteries in Cheonan, Chungnam. It plans to expand production capacity to a Giga Factory scale in the future.

Using FEST™ (Factorial Electrolyte System Technology) developed by Factorial, it is possible to manufacture high-voltage, high-capacity, and safe batteries by utilizing solid electrolyte materials. Batteries based on FEST™ can increase driving range by 20?50% at the same cost as existing batteries.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.