VOICES

Battery recycling essential for clean energy future, and it's rooted in Nevada | Cole

Doug Cole

Subscribe:Read local news and views with a 99-cent subscription to the RGJ

This opinion column was submitted by Doug Cole, CEO of the American Battery Technology Company.

The clean energy revolution is here. Faced with a climate crisis that impacts people and the planet, a shift to sustainable energy is not an option, it’s a requirement. The switch to renewable energy can be found in products like electric vehicles, consumer tools and electronics, and stationary power storage projects. Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries make all of these products possible.

But the problem for the U.S. is that the materials needed to manufacture lithium-ion batteries are primarily mined and refined outside our country, in countries with weak environmental and labor practices, and run by governments that are often difficult to work with.

Further, as they lose their ability to hold a charge, carelessly disposing of lithium-ion batteries poisons the land on which we live. Instead of disposing them, these end-of-life batteries still contain the critical materials that could be re-used to manufacture new batteries.

American Battery Technology Company and our partners are meeting these challenges by creating a green recycling process for lithium-ion batteries — and we are doing so in Northern Nevada. We are building a plant in Fernley, Nevada to demonstrate to the market and to the world that ABTC can help secure our country’s clean sustainable energy future right here in the Silver State.  We are building a team of people who are passionate about clean energy and our fellow humans.

ABTC is an American-owned company headquartered in Northern Nevada. Our clean technology platform recycles lithium-ion batteries to produce primary battery materials such as lithium, manganese, cobalt and nickel. There are few lithium-ion battery recycling facilities in operation globally, much less in the United States, and many rely on brute force recycling methods that have negative environmental consequences. ABTC’s lithium-ion battery recycling process handles materials in a “closed loop.” That means that the entire recycling process is self-contained, and does not discharge material, liquid, or air emissions from our facility into the surrounding environment or community.

ABTC’s approach is based on these five key principles:

► Securing supply chains: Implement a platform approach through recycling, extraction and stewardship of battery materials to support secure and resilient supply chains for cars, tools, and electronics that enable our everyday lives.

► Addressing climate change: Develop technology and processes that do not emit air toxins; that eliminate water pollution; that reduce water consumption; and that are powered by on-site renewable energy sources.

► Empowering people and place: Commit to increasing social mobility for all in local communities through growing clean manufacturing jobs and championing the health and well-being of local communities  in Northern Nevada.

► “Greening” the industry: Build partnerships to develop and scale green technologies across the battery recycling industry in Nevada, the United States, and globally.

► Evolving regulatory frameworks to enable innovation: Partner with decision-makers to put in place a policy framework for our new industry that allows for evolving innovation and growth of clean manufacturing jobs throughout Nevada.

By focusing on our people and planet, we believe our company can enable the transition to a thriving clean energy economy — in Northern Nevada, in our state and across the country. With industry expertise across the battery metals supply chain, ABTC is positioned to fuel the increasing demand for battery metals with a domestically based green and clean technology platform. At ABTC we are committed to this vision. We challenge others to join us in our mission — to grow and innovate with local communities, as we lead the way to a truly clean, sustainable future.

Have your say:How to submit an opinion column or letter to the editor