Green Li-ion says its battery recycling machines are “the size of a small house,” so it’s no surprise that the Singapore-based startup needs to top up the funds. It had raised only about $15 million before its latest cash infusion.
This week, Green Li-ion announced a $20.5 million “before Series B” round led by climate-tech investor TRIREC. The startup said other investors, including SOSV and Equinor Ventures (the VC arm of the Norwegian-owned fossil fuel giant), are also involved.
The deal boosts Green Li-ion’s post-money valuation to $187 million after just three years, chief executive Leon Farrant told TechCrunch. The startup’s logo is (you guessed it!) a green lion.
The new cash will help startup scale production of its recycling tech, which the firm says can process “100% of all used lithium batteries” and pop out the precursor cathode active material that eventually becomes new. lithium-ion batteries.
Lithium is a high demand and mined metal causing damage to the environmentwhich makes recycling tech an important tool in reducing the footprint of things like electric cars and storage for renewable energy.
Photo Credits: Green Li-ion
Green Li-ion does not recycle batteries itself; it licenses its technology to battery makers and recyclers, including Aleon and TES (owned by SK, the fossil fuel giant based in South Korea). Green Li-ion aims to crank out 50 recycling units per year through two factories — one in Houston, Texas and the other in Singapore.
As for “pre-Series B,” Farrant said the startup split its Series B into two parts, covering the raise announced this week and another in about nine months. “Given our relatively low level of fundraising to date,” the founder added, the startup “needs to draw a line in the sand and establish an incremental amount for a larger portion of the raise.”