Ever wondered what happens to the millions of batteries that we discard after we are finished with them? Me neither, but it is actually a huge problem. There are rejuvenation and recycling options, but these are generally small scale with limited capacity – this creates a problem as they have no commercial viability.
When we heard about Green Li-ion, a green tech startup specializing in sustainable industrial solutions for battery rejuvenation, we thought it would be a good chance to find out more about this industry.
The recently raised USD3.45 million in seed funding from LiNico Corporation, TES, HAX SOSV and Entrepreneur First. This brings their total funding to almost USD 4 million.
Here are some of the top greentech startups in Southeast Asia
We spoke to Leon Farrant, CEO of Green Li-Ion to find out more about their company and what they plan today. Together with co-founder Reza Katal, he started the business just one year ago and is already planning their ascension to a global leader. Find out more about their vision, technology and impact of their business.
Congrats on the funding. Could you elaborate on how you would be using the funds?
At Green Li-ion, we are committed to revolutionizing the energy storage industry with the world’s first deep clean technology that fully rejuvenates Lithium-Ion batteries. To date, we have developed an operational prototype of our patented multi-cathode processor, GLMC-1, which can recycle all types of spent Lithium-Ion batteries into 99.9% pure cathodes. This speeds up current recycling processes by up to 10 times, and improves profits by more than four times.
This seed capital will then be channeled towards further hardware development, including Tier-1 engineering and specialist manufacturing support for our product. We are looking forward to introducing the product to market this year.
Given the niche-aspect of your industry, could you highlight some of the major issues that it currently faces?
While the Lithium-Ion battery industry may seem niche, the challenges that arise cannot be looked at in isolation. Due to the lack of profitability with existing Lithium-Ion battery recycling, 95% of all batteries tend to end up in dangerous landfills. At the same time, the planet is running out of precious metals required to sustain the ever-increasing demand for batteries, with some of them expected to run out within the next 25 years!
One of the world’s biggest challenges is how we can maintain sustainable growth while preserving natural resources. It is more important than ever that we develop circular economy solutions – like battery recycling – that are carbon neutral and can close the loop. This is where our innovative battery recycling technology comes in to disrupt the industry, and offer stakeholders in the supply chain a solution that’s not only more sustainable, but also more profitable for them in the long run.
What are the challenges you foresee in scaling this business?
There will inevitably be challenges when we try to scale novel technologies like ours. But by raising one of the largest seed rounds in Singapore, we are confident that we will be able to access the Tier-1 engineering and construction needed to continue building and scaling our product. We are also excited to be working with partners like LiNiCo and TES, who provide us with the opportunities to ramp up production while also contributing to research and development.
Do you see a lot of demand in Southeast Asia for your tech?
Certainly – we have seen demand for our technology in any country that cares about their escalating landfills and the leak of dangerous Lithium-Ion batteries on their planet. In particular, we see the opportunity for Singapore to be a hub of battery rejuvenation for the region, especially as it continues to champion the use of renewables and green energy. We have also received interest for our Asia built technology, the GLLFP-1, which was built specifically for Asia’s EV battery demand.
What’s next for Green Li-ion?
We are excited to hit the ground running, and are working closely with our clients in Asia and the United States of America to deliver our first five machines (pre-sold). We will continue to work towards our sales target of US1.3 billion, via our sales delivery and maintenance of additional machines.