The company will invest over $175 million dollars in a lithium-ion battery recycling 'Hub' on a 15.4-acre parcel of land at Eastman Business Park (EBP).
This is in addition to its Li-Cycle's first US 'Spoke' operation already located at the park in Monroe County.
The company has committed to creating at least 100 new jobs at the Hub, in addition to the 23 who will be working at the Spoke facility.
Li-Cycle plans to begin construction on the Hub facility in 2021.
Li-Cycle's "Spoke" and "Hub" operations will complement each other.
There will be several US-based Spokes that aggregate and refine spent, lithium-ion batteries so that the materials are separated and can be made into products.
Rochester's Li-Cycle Spoke, due to open this Fall, will be capable of shredding up to 5,000 t/yr of spent lithium-ion batteries.
Ultimately, the Hub operation in Rochester will receive battery materials from the Rochester Spoke and similar operations across the US, and process them further for use as raw materials in future manufacturing, including for new batteries.
ESD is assisting Li-Cycle with up to $5 million through the Excelsior Jobs Tax Credit Program once the business starts meeting new employment commitments.
Monroe County and Greater Rochester Enterprise are also assisting with the project.
Founded in 2016 in Ontario, Canada, Li-Cycle has developed and validated a unique process that allows them to recover 80 to 100% of all materials found in lithium-ion batteries while maintaining no wastewater discharge and actualizing the company's zero waste philosophy.
All materials that are recovered from lithium-ion batteries are either processed to the point of being reusable in battery production, thus closing the loop, reusable in other applications or sent for further processing to other recyclers (e.g.
steel and plastics) to ensure all materials generated are being returned to the economy.
The company is capable of processing all types of lithium-ion batteries used in electronic devices, e-mobility, electric vehicles and energy storage.
The Hub project builds on the success story that is the rebirth of Eastman Business Park, where more than 6,000 people work at 114 companies now operating.
Other sustainable Technology efforts at EBP aimed at growing the sustainable energy ecosystem include the BEST Test and Commercialization Center, the Kodak Cell Assembly Center and Plug Power.
Other companies also thriving at EBP include DuPont, which last year opened the largest probiotics fermentation facility in the world, L3 Harris, LiDestri Food and Drink and Clearwater Organic Farms, which will also open a state-of-the-art, commercial hydroponic greenhouse in the fall of 2020. ■
A very active and complex mid-May weather pattern is set to produce numerous areas of severe weather, heavy rain, high winds, and anomalous temperatures through this weekend.