Recycle100 and 21ABC - battery conferences in Asia
In early September, representatives of the world's largest battery companies converged on the island of Borneo. The Recycle100 and 21st Asian Battery conferences were held there, discussing current trends and challenges in the lead and battery recycling industries. AUTOPART was represented by Vice President Mariusz Słowik and metallurgist Rafał Szela.
The meetings in Asia provided an opportunity to explore the industry's growth potential and exchange insights on the current challenges facing the battery sector.
Several points were particularly noteworthy:
- James Griffiths (analyst at Base Metal, CRU) and other speakers highlighted the US government's addition of six new elements – including lead – to the draft 2025 Critical Minerals List.
- Mark Stevenson (Global Lead Technology) and Dr. Michael McDonagh (Microtex Energy) presented potential solutions to mitigate the impact of high antimony prices on battery production.
- Dr. Matthew Raiford (CBI) discussed the role of lead batteries in the era of electrification, highlighting the growing demand for UPS systems for data centers, driven by the rapid development of artificial intelligence.
- Dr. Li Dong (LEOCH) shared insights on the Chinese recycling market, where recycling capacity is up to five times greater than actual production. The conferences also provided an excellent opportunity to network with suppliers of raw materials and technologies.
We thank everyone for the inspiring discussions and knowledge exchange, and congratulate the organizers on such a well-prepared event.
