Attero expects 65% of $2 billion revenue target in 5 years to come from Lithium-Ion recycling

Representative image of e-waste. Image source: Shutterstock

E-waste recycling firm Attero Recycling expects lithium-ion battery processing business to contribute 65 per cent of company's targeted revenue of USD 2 billion (about Rs 16,500 crore) in five years, a top official of the company said.

Attero Recycling's CEO and Co-Founder Nitin Gupta told PTI that the company is in process of setting up its first lithium-ion (Li-Ion) plant in Europe, which is expected to be operational by September 2023.

"Our electronic waste recycling is growing 100 per cent on a year-on-year basis. Li-Ion business contributes around 10 per cent to the total business but within 5 years Li-Ion will contribute 65 per cent to our annual revenue. Li-Ion is growing 500 per cent annually," Gupta said.

The company at present has 4,500 metric tonnes of recycling capacity of Li-Ion batteries. It has announced setting up a new plant in Telangana with Rs 600 crore investment, which will add 15,000 metric tonnes annual recycling capacity by December 2023.

"Top automobile OEMs of the world have signed with Attero because recycled metals are reducing their dependence on China for cobalt, lithium, graphite etc. That is what the regulators in those countries are pushing for and that is why they are keen on figuring out non-China supply. Our carbon footprint is multiple times lower than mined metals, which is helping them in improving their carbon footprint," Gupta said.

He claimed that the company is recovering more than 98 per cent of battery grade cobalt, lithium carbonate, graphite, nickel (from used batteries) which is being exported to top automobile OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) across the world which they are using to manufacture new battery cells.

Attero plans to invest Rs 7,500 crore for setting up 3 lakh tonnes lithium-ion battery processing capacity over a period of five years.

"We will set up 35 per cent capacity in Europe and the US each, 20 per cent in India, 10 per cent in Asia, excluding India, which means 60,000 per annum capacity in the next 5 years will be set up in India. With this, we will become a USD 2 billion revenue company. We are a cash flow positive, profitable company," Gupta said.