Materials startup Tozero has launched its first battery recycling plant, targeting 80 per cent mineral recovery from 1,500 tonnes of battery waste per year.
Sited at Munich’s Chemical Park Gendorf, the demonstrator scale plant utilises Tozero’s proprietary acid-free, hydrometallurgy process. The technology is claimed to recover high-purity lithium-carbonate as well as graphite and a nickel-cobalt mix. Tozero said the materials can be fed directly back into battery manufacturing, and the company has worked with OEMs including BMW and MAN to validate the process.
The demo plant is set to act as a stepping stone en route to a full commercial-scale facility, planned to begin operations in 2030. According to Tozero co-founder and CEO Sarah Fleischer, the company’s aim is to help Europe establish a more independent battery supply chain and reduce mineral dependence on China.
“Europe doesn’t yet have the critical raw materials it needs to build and scale its own energy transition and battery industry,” said Fleischer.
“Our technology, now scaled 10,000 times, changes this by enabling us to recycle end-of-life batteries and extract these materials at industrial scale for the first time. In just under four years, Tozero has gone from lab-scale experiments to industrial operations and we’re consistently proving that recycling isn’t just a pilot project – it can be delivered at a level capable of giving Europe a homegrown, circular supply of critical materials its future runs on.”
Founded in 2022, Tozero has scaled rapidly, aiming to become a prominent player in Europe’s nascent battery sector, which has suffered a number of setbacks in recent years. In April 2024, it became the first company in Europe to deliver recycled lithium to commercial customers. It followed this in February 2025 by being the first to qualify 100 per cent recycled graphite for use in industrial-scale cell production.
“Scaling our technology from lab to industrial production in such a short time is a defining milestone for any deep-tech founder and marks the transition from development to real-world validation at industrial scale,” said Dr Ksenija Milicevic Neumann, co-founder and CTO of Tozero.
“It’s a milestone I’m very proud of, especially seeing the team bring this plant to life.”
