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Bringing Lithium-Ion Battery Waste tozero

Objective

tozero is committed to its mission to truly bring lithium-ion battery waste to zero. With its novel hydrometallurgical (i.e. wet chemical)
battery recycling approach, it can maximize the recovery of critical raw materials (lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, and graphite)
from both lithium-ion batteries that have reached their end of life, and scrap created during the production of new batteries.
Proven on a daily basis in an operational pilot plant (commissioned in July 2023) close to Munich, Germany, tozero already now fulfills
the recovery rates for critical raw materials from lithium-ion battery waste required by the recently enforced EU Battery Directive for
2027 and 2031 and established itself as one of the leading battery recycling startups in Europe. In addition, the use of less aggressive
chemicals than competitors and a mostly closed circular production process reduces the carbon footprint for batteries using tozero’s
recycled material compared to batteries using mined materials by up to 80%.

Considering an initial pre-seed funding of EUR 3.5mn in 2022, receiving the EIC grant would allow to significantly accelerate tozero´s
scale up to industry-scale commercialization and bridge the gap for the next funding round. First, this includes additional funds from
the EIC for the purchasing and in-house optimization of chemical reactors tailored to the innovative hydrometallurgical process of
tozero. Second, it allows us to largely automate our processing and prepare for industry-scale processing. Third, it supports in the
creation of a full lifecycle assessment that is required to officially accredit our CO2e savings and helps to identify the largest lever to
further reduce our environmental footprint. All three aspects combined allow to reach an industrial scale proof of our operations and
unlock a large equity financing round in 2026.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

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Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-EIC-ACC - HORIZON EIC Accelerator

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) HORIZON-EIC-2024-ACCELERATOR-02

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Coordinator

TOZERO GMBH
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 2 499 952,00
Address
ROSA-BAVARESE-STRASSE 3
80639 MUNICH
Germany

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SME

The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.

Yes
Region
Bayern Oberbayern München, Kreisfreie Stadt
Activity type
Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

No data
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