Enel X and MIDAC join forces to develop a sustainable lithium battery supply chain in Italy

Enel X and MIDAC are engaging in R&D activities to build Italy’s first major recycling plant for lithium batteries used in electric vehicles, industrial systems, and stationary systems.

This initiative, implemented in partnership with other Italian and European companies and research institutes, including ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), is part of the European IPCEI batteries project. The goal is to help develop a European lithium battery supply chain that is both sustainable and based on a circular approach. It is estimated that, in Europe, a total of around 200,000 tons of lithium batteries will have to be recycled by 2030. Therefore, this project will help make the energy transition more sustainable.

As part of this project, Enel X and MIDAC will be conducting R&D activities, in their own fields of expertise, in order to build the plant by developing a virtuous circular model to transform spent battery packs back into raw materials, which can then used to make new cells. This will result in less mineral extraction, thereby reducing the costs and environmental impact of the process.

More specifically, Enel X will be in charge of researching and developing cutting-edge technology that automatically dismantles lithium batteries, as well as their recycling process. MIDAC, on the other hand, will be developing the entire lithium recycling process, at first on a pilot scale and then by building an industrial plant with an annual capacity of at least 10,000 tons.

This is the third IPCEI battery project for Enel X – following two others, launched in 2020 and 2021, respectively – to foster the development of Digital Twin technology and of other cutting-edge, sustainable technologies for lithium-ion batteries, with the end goal of extending their life, reducing charging times, and making them safer and more environmentally friendly.