Ecobat to sell Stolberg GmbH

Ecobat, an Irving, Texas-based battery recycler, and Trafigura, a Singapore-based commodity trading company, have entered into a binding agreement for the sale of Ecobat Resources Stolberg GmbH (ERS), which owns the Stolberg multimetals processing plant in Germany. The Stolberg plant will be operated and managed by global multimetals company Nyrstar, which is 98 percent owned by the Trafigura Group.

Ecobat has operations in Europe, the United States and Africa and focuses on lead and lithium battery collection and recycling management services.

“The sale of ERS is consistent with our strategy to concentrate on our core business of battery recycling and represents a significant step in the rationalization of our portfolio,” says Marcus Randolph, CEO of Ecobat.

“Combining the Stolberg plant with Nyrstar, which operates three European zinc smelters within a 300-kilometer (186-mile) radius of the Stolberg plant, offers a unique opportunity to leverage several of Nyrstar’s byproducts as feed material for the Stolberg multimetal business, offering locally produced strategic materials to Europe’s critical growth markets with a reduced carbon footprint and increased efficiency,” says Daniel Vanin, CEO of Nyrstar. “We look forward to welcoming the highly engaged Stolberg team to Nyrstar and are excited to continue to grow a business which offers highly relevant materials for the fast-evolving European green transition.”

The transaction is subject to the satisfaction of customary conditions, including receipt of certain regulatory approvals. Completion is expected to occur in the third quarter of 2022, according to Ecobat.