Wolverhampton's battery recycling centre Recyclus secures largest contract to date

Wolverhampton-based Recyclus Group has secured a three-year agreement to recycle lithium-ion batteries from a global automotive original equipment manufacturer - its largest contract to date.

Recyclus, a subsidiary of UK listed company Technology Minerals Plc which trades as Mantle, will process the electric vehicle lithium-ion battery packs at its Wolverhampton industrial-scale facility.

Recyclus will receive gate fees for the batteries, together with revenues from the sale of black mass and other recovered materials.

The three-year agreement is expected to take Recyclus closer to full capacity at its facility in Lincoln Street, Heath Town, and nearly doubles the firm’s volumes with a corresponding increase in revenue.

The take or pay contract, which includes a mutual break clause exercisable at 18 months, is also expected to enable Recyclus to achieve consistent profitability before the end of the current financial year, supporting further growth and customer acquisition.

It also bolsters the value of Mantle’s investment in Recyclus and supports the Group’s broader strategy of developing and scaling sovereign capabilities, reducing reliance on external supply chains and contributing to the UK’s critical minerals and supply chain resilience objectives.

The global automotive business has not been identified but Alex Stanbury, chief executive officer of Technology Minerals and director of Recyclus, said of the deal: “This contract is a defining milestone for Recyclus. It is the largest we have secured, it comes from a global OEM (original equipment manufacturer), and it gives us the contracted base we need to move from project work to a scalable, nationally relevant recycling capability.

“It is a strong endorsement of both our technology and our ability to deliver at commercial scale, and provides an important foundation from which to build further customer relationships and long-term growth. This agreement is the result of a relationship built over time on reliability and service. We look forward to deepening this partnership.”

Nicholas Bridle, chief operating officer of Technology Minerals, which is focused on building national resource and manufacturing resilience, added: “This contract is an example of the foundation we set out to build. A global OEM committing contracted volume to a UK industrial-scale recycler shows that sovereign capability can be built, owned and scaled as an operating business.

“It turns capability into cash flow, shortens a critical supply chain, and gives the Group a clear path from single site to a nationally relevant capability. It is the model working.

“The team at Recyclus are to be congratulated on this important milestone.”