Chinese battery recycler GEM has signed a three-year cobalt materials supply deal with Swiss mining company Glencore.
GEM said the move would secure materials needed to supply batteries to China’s growing electric vehicle market.
GEM said in a Shenzhen Stock Exchange that Glencore would provide a total of 52,800 tons of cobalt hydroxide between 2018 and 2020 for use in automotive batteries.
According to GEM, which owns China’s largest recycling industrial base for used batteries and automotive battery materials, its annual recycling capacity of lithium-ion batteries is more than 20% of the Chinese market.
The Chinese recycler has also formed business partnerships with South Korean battery material firm Ecopro and battery manufacturer Samsung SDI.
Last year, it was reported that Glencore had signed a deal to supply cobalt materials to Chinese lithium battery manufacturer CATL— which supplies batteries for Volkswagen’s electric vehicles.
