Ascend, Trafigura sign offtake agreement for lithium carbonate

Lithium-ion battery recycler Ascend Elements, Westborough, Massachusetts, has announced a multiyear offtake agreement for lithium carbonate with Trafigura Group Pte. Ltd., a global commodities firm specializing in logistics and marketing for oil and petroleum products, metals, minerals, gas and power. Ascend says the agreement totals 15,000 metric tons of material that will be delivered between 2027 and 2031.

Under the terms of the agreement, Trafigura will provide global marketing and logistics capabilities, while Ascend produces refined, low-carbon lithium carbonate produced from recycled lithium-ion batteries and manufacturing scrap via its patented Hydro-to-Cathode process.

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Ascend says the partnership supports its North American and European pipeline, while Trafigura is able to expand its portfolio of recycled materials it can place across its global customer base, supporting original equipment manufacturers to meet circularity and compliance goals.

“Trafigura’s global platform paired with our Hydro-to-Cathode process turns circularity into supply security,” Ascend President and CEO Linh Austin says. “Together, we’ll deliver low-carbon, recycled lithium carbonate that is traceable, responsibly sourced and available where customers build across the U.S. and Europe, reducing carbon, cost and geopolitical risk while accelerating a resilient battery supply chain.”

Ascend notes that Trafigura, a Singapore-based company with more than 50 locations worldwide, including a U.S. office in Houston, provides extensive market reach, logistics and storage infrastructure to enable global distribution of the battery recycler’s lithium carbonate product.

“We are pleased to be partnering with Ascend Elements and supporting the circular economy,” says Gonzalo De Olazaval, head of Metals and Minerals at Trafigura. “Ascend Elements’ patented process, which produces battery-grade lithium carbonate from domestic scrap, is advancing the development of domestic battery supply chains in the U.S. and Europe—a priority to ensure security of supply.”