Chemicals producer Orbia led a $70m funding round for US-based battery recycling and manufacturing services provider Battery Resourcers on Tuesday that included corporates Koura, Hitachi, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), Doral Energy, TDK and Trumpf.
Orbia, conglomerate Hitachi, carmaker JLR, electronics manufacturer TDK and industrial tool supplier Trumpf invested through Orbia Ventures, Hitachi Ventures, InMotion Ventures, TDK Ventures and Trumpf Ventures respectively.
Fluoroproduct manufacturer Koura and renewable power infrastructure developer Doral Energy took part in the round directly, as did venture capital firm At One Ventures.
Spun out of the laboratory of Yan Wang, a professor of mechanical engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, in 2015, Battery Resourcers recycles lithium-ion batteries through a process that turns them back into battery-ready materials.
Proceeds from the round will be used to build two new commercial-scale processing facilities next year to meet rising demand for batteries.
The round comes just weeks after Doral subsidiary Doral Energy-Tech Ventures, Hitachi Ventures, Orbia Ventures, InMotion Ventures, TDK Ventures, Trumpf Ventures and At One Ventures injected $70m into the company, though the rounds appear to be separate.
Orbia Ventures also led Battery Resourcers’ $20m series B round in April this year, investing with Doral Energy-Tech Ventures, InMotion Ventures, TDK Ventures, Trumpf Ventures and At One Ventures.
Battery Resourcers chief executive Mike O’Kronley said: “The partnership we have with Orbia and Koura has blossomed from a vision for a circular future and through solving for the most critical part of an integrated supply chain: the battery chemistries themselves.
“Koura’s ownership of raw assets and expertise in battery materials is second to none. Together, I look forward to driving the clean transition locally and globally.”
