Tozero, a Germany-based battery recycling startup, has officially inaugurated its industrial lithium-ion battery recycling facility, strengthening Europe’s push toward a more secure and sustainable battery materials supply chain. The initiative highlights the growing importance of recycling as demand for electric vehicle batteries continues to rise globally.
The facility, located at the Chemical Park Gendorf in Bavaria, is designed to process over 1,500 tonnes of lithium-ion battery waste annually. The plant focuses on recovering critical raw materials including lithium and graphite, which are essential for next-generation battery production.
The company’s recycling process is based on hydrometallurgical technology, which uses low-temperature chemical extraction instead of traditional smelting methods. This advanced approach helps maximize material recovery efficiency while reducing environmental impact compared to conventional recycling techniques.
Founded in 2022, Tozero has quickly progressed from research-stage innovation to commercial deployment. The company has already demonstrated the effectiveness of its technology by supplying recycled lithium materials to industry partners, showing strong potential for scalability.
The project also aligns with Europe’s circular economy objectives by ensuring that valuable battery materials are reused in the manufacturing cycle. This strategy is expected to reduce reliance on imported resources while supporting regional battery manufacturing growth.
With battery demand expected to grow rapidly over the next decade, Tozero aims to further expand its recycling capacity. The company sees this facility as a stepping stone toward building large-scale recycling infrastructure to support the future energy transition.
