Startup company Battery Resourcers plans to open a recycling plant for lithium-ion batteries in Georgia this year, as automakers shifting to EVs drive up demand for the energy-storage devices.
Battery Resourcers will invest $43 million in the facility and expects it to be fully operational in August, the Worcester, Mass., company said in a statement Wednesday. The plant — located in Covington, east of Atlanta — will produce lithium, cobalt and nickel for use in new batteries.
The move comes as lithium-ion battery prices are expected to rise after years of steady decline, pushed higher by surging demand and increased costs for raw materials. U.S. President Joe Biden, whose climate change plans rely on switching to EVs, has called for creating an entire advanced-battery supply chain within the U.S., from lithium mining to battery manufacturing and recycling.