Formosa Smart Energy builds Taiwan’s 1st lithium battery recycling pilot line
台塑新智能打造台灣首條鋰電池試量產線
| TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Formosa Smart Energy said Tuesday that it completed Taiwan’s first lithium battery recycling pilot line, which is expected to strengthen the nation’s energy supply chain through resource reuse.
The recycling line first extracts black mass, a powdery mixture containing valuable metals, from discarded batteries, then uses chemical processes to refine it and separate the metal elements. The facility will be used to process waste batteries generated by the company's battery cell factory in the Changhua Coastal Industrial Park, per CNA. Formosa Smart Energy General Manager Liu Hui-chi (劉慧啟) said the metals and chemical substances separated from waste batteries will be used to produce new lithium batteries, cement, combustion aids, aluminum alloys, and other industrial materials. Company Chair Sandy Wang (王瑞瑜) said the use of lithium batteries has expanded beyond electronic devices to include EVs and energy storage systems. She noted that lithium battery usage is steadily increasing in Taiwan, making recycling and proper disposal increasingly important. Wang said that approximately 28.3% of Taiwan's discarded lithium batteries are directly exported overseas, while the remainder are processed domestically before being exported again, with 9.7% retained for use in Taiwan. This leads to a significant outflow of valuable metal resources. Taiwan generated approximately 15,000 tonnes of lithium battery waste last year, according to the Resource Circulation Administration. Discarded lithium batteries contain several valuable metal resources. To retain these resources within Taiwan, the Ministry of Environment is introducing lower recycling and disposal fees for lithium batteries starting in July, aiming to encourage industry participation in recycling and reuse efforts. In June, the company partnered with Ming Chi University of Technology's Battery Research Center to develop an all-solid-state lithium battery prototype. They also launched a pilot production line to test the new batteries, which includes key component synthesis, cell stacking, module assembly, and quality control processes. |
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| Carol Yang Taiwan News, Staff Writer | |
| 2025-07-01 |
