L&F Partners with CIS Chemical for Battery Recycling Collaboration

MOU Signed for "LFP and NCM Recycling Cooperation"

From Cathode Production to Battery Recycling,

Collaboration to Build a Circular Economy System

L&F is partnering with CIS Chemical to collaborate on the recycling of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) batteries.

L&F announced that on May 7, the company signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for "LFP and NCM Recycling Cooperation" at the CIS Chemical plant in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province. The signing ceremony was attended by Jaehyun Joo, Head of New Business Development Center at L&F, and Youngman Kim, Vice President of CIS Chemical, along with other representatives from both companies.

The core aim of this agreement is to establish a domestic closed-loop system that connects every stage from cathode materials production to waste battery collection and reintegration of raw materials. The two companies plan to cooperate in four areas: joint procurement of recycled raw materials, full-cycle technology collaboration, supply and quality verification of recycled materials, and commercialization and ESG cooperation based on the circular economy.

CIS Chemical is a battery recycling specialist with a proprietary process that achieves a material recovery rate of over 98%. Through this collaboration, L&F aims to strengthen the domestic recycling value chain, reduce reliance on Chinese raw materials, and secure supply chain stability for recycled materials across its entire LFP and NCM product portfolio.

The two companies will share domestic and international supply chain information and quality data for recycled materials such as packs, modules, cells, scrap, and black mass (BM), and will also develop joint sourcing strategies.

In particular, L&F's subsidiary JHC (Jaeil Chemical Industry) will supply black mass through pre-processing of waste batteries, after which CIS Chemical will recover key raw materials through post-processing. These materials will then be used in L&F's cathode material production, creating a domestic battery closed-loop system that connects pre-processing, post-processing, and reintegration.

The companies will also jointly establish quality standards for recycled materials such as mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), lithium carbonate, and lithium iron phosphate. They plan to simultaneously pursue improved quality and commercialization cooperation to enhance applicability in cathode manufacturing processes, as well as ESG and policy collaboration.

Jaehyun Joo, Head of New Business Development Center at L&F, stated, "We have taken another step toward building a domestic closed-loop ecosystem that connects cathode material production, collection, and reintegration. We will strengthen our Korea-centric supply chain to enhance raw material procurement stability and proactively respond to changes in global regulations."