Blue Whale commissions Oklahoma battery materials plant

Blue Whale Materials LLC (BWM), Bartlesville, Oklahoma, has commissioned what it calls its baseline black mass production facility in Bartlesville designed to recycle and produce lithium-ion battery materials.

Once commissioning is complete, the plant will be capable of processing up to 14,000 metric tons of battery manufacturing scrap annually, according to BWM, producing its branded Blacksand black mass product that contains cobalt, nickel and lithium.

Construction continues at the site, with BWM anticipating reaching full processing capacity in the first quarter of next year.

“Today marks a pivotal achievement for Blue Whale Materials and for the U.S. critical minerals ecosystem,” BWM co-founder and CEO Robert Kang says.

“Commissioning this baseline black mass plant demonstrates our technological leadership in recovering vital battery-grade metals. It also paves the way for our upcoming full recycling system, which will further strengthen domestic battery supply chains and bring sustainable high-quality jobs to communities like Bartlesville.”

BWM's Blacksand product is an advanced, dry, mixed-metal precursor containing cobalt, nickel and lithium, with low impurities.

The Bartlesville facility received a Department of Energy grant of more than $55 million to support a four-year expansion project expected to add processing capacity up to 50,000 metric tons per year once complete.

In addition to processing materials, BWM also is involved with end-of-life lithium-ion battery collection, logistics and sorting services and conducts testing and grading of end-of-life batteries for remanufacturing and second life applications at its Bartlesville facility.

“Producing our high-quality Blacksand here in the U.S. is huge step for Blue Whale Materials to produce needed critical minerals for the domestic supply chain and to offer complete battery life-cycle solutions for our customers,” says David Fauvre, co-founder and chief strategy officer at BWM.

“Ara Partners is proud to support Blue Whale Materials as it achieves this key operational milestone,” says Cory Steffek, a partner at Ara Partners, a Houston-based private equity firm.

“Commissioning the baseline black mass line underscores BWM’s ability to deliver practical, scalable solutions for domestic critical mineral recovery. Combined with the upcoming full-stack battery recycling capability, this progress strengthens the industrial resilience and sustainability of U.S. supply chains.”