The German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE) is providing around 170 million euros for seven industrial projects as part of the so-called STARK program. The projects are designed to support the economic restructuring of former coal regions in Germany. The ministry expects the funded projects to trigger investments of around 600 million euros and to secure 600 direct jobs as wel as several thousand indirect ones in the long term. Much of the funding will go to projects for battery production and recycling.
First LFP recycling plant in Europe
For instance, Aachen-based start-up company “cylib” will receive 63.4 million euros to build a new recycling plant at Chempark Dormagen. The project will include an industrial line for processing lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, a technology that has not yet been available in Europe. Scheduled to begin operating in 2027, the plant will have an annual capacity of 60,000 tons. The plant is expected to create 180 direct jobs and up to 1,000 additional ones.
Battery-grade lithium salts
Meanwhile, at the Bitterfeld-Wolfen Chemical Park, AMG Lithium GmbH from Frankfurt plans to build a production facility for battery-grade lithium salts. The plant will receive 36 million euros in funding and is estimated to produce around 20,000 tons per year. In Saxony, Altech Batteries is constructing a planrt for the production of salt storage tanks. STARK funds are also supporting smaller projects in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia.
