Thursday 9th March 2023 – Oxford

Oxentia and Botree Cycling have entered into a partnership which seeks to address the growing need for large-scale battery recycling solutions in the UK and Europe.

Having recently signed a letter of intent with the city of Guben in Germany to invest up to 100 million Euros in a battery recycling and training demonstration centre, Botree Cycling is now looking to set up a similar centre in the UK, in addition to seeking partnerships for licensing and investment across Europe.

The International Energy Agency, within its Sustainable Development Scenario predicts that there could be 230 million electric vehicles (EVs) on the world’s roads by 2030, compared to 11 million in 2020¹. The transition to EVs will substantially increase the need for batteries and the Faraday Institution, a UK based battery research institute, estimates that ten gigafactories will be needed in the UK by 2040². Europe and China continue to lead the global Electric Vehicle (EV) market, yet global supply chains providing battery components, including precious metals, means that international collaboration and partnerships are required to build hydrometallurgy and precious metal extraction expertise and capacity.

Development of a circular battery lifecycle is becoming increasingly critical to supporting a sustainable manufacturing infrastructure. Through innovations in materials separation systems and intelligent equipment, Botree Cycling enables recycling enterprises, electric vehicle enterprises, battery manufacturers and other entities responsible for recycling to realise short, closed, and sustainable recycling of battery materials.

Xiao Lin, Founder and CEO, Botree Cycling reflected, “I had my first contact with Oxentia via the Newton Fund, in 2017. I was a member of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s LIF Programme, which supports researchers and innovators across the world, and this allowed me to train in the UK. After returning to China, two years later we established Botree. We are looking forward to working with Oxentia to support our understanding of the UK and EU sustainability goals, their technical requirements and supply chains, plus connecting with potential partners. We see a significant potential to match our research and experience in the industry to the needs of the region in meeting its sustainability goals, and going carbon neutral by 2030.”

Oxentia CEO, Steve Cleverley added, “Oxentia has always worked with innovators at the forefront of technological development to tackle large global challenges, particularly in sustainability. We are excited to support Botree Cycling, whom we first met during one of the international entrepreneurship programmes we support, aimed at bringing knowledge and expertise to the UK and European market. Our work with Botree Cycling will provide UK and European organisations working in the battery recycling sector access to technology and innovations that have already been demonstrated in the Chinese market.”

In the coming months Oxentia will be working alongside Botree Cycling to make new connections and explore partnerships with major automotive and energy companies across the UK and Europe. The medium-term aim will be for development of a new UK-based demonstration plant, at a location to be decided upon.

__________________________________________________________________________________ 

About Botree Cycling

Botree Cycling was founded with the aim of providing a full solution for the recycling of batteries and precious metals. Through separation system innovation and intelligent equipment, Botree Cycling enables recycling enterprises, electric vehicle enterprises, battery manufacturers and other entities responsible for recycling to realize short, closed and sustainable cycling of battery materials.

The company provides industrial and technical consulting, intelligent mobile recycling equipment (500-5,000 tons battery packs/year) and large-scale engineering recycling facilities (10,000-100,000 tons battery packs/year) design and installation.

About Oxentia

Oxentia works in partnership with individuals and organisations to build capacity, develop capability and create opportunities to enable innovation.

Oxentia started life as an operating division of Oxford University Innovation, the technology transfer company of the University of Oxford. Our roots are in Oxford, but our outlook is global – since 2004 we have supported and empowered clients in over 70 countries.

Our clients are as diverse as our work; from corporations, universities and governments to inventors and investors, early-career researchers and FTSE 250 R&D teams to charities and investment banks. We help bring new ideas to life.

1 https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2021/prospects-for-electric-vehicle-deployment

2 https://www.faraday.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Faraday_Insights_2_update_July_2022_FINAL.pdf