Green Li-ion raises $20.5M pre-Series B at $187M and licenses its recycling machines

Singapore-based battery recycling technology company that licenses machines turning used lithium batteries into cathode precursor material

Licensing house-sized recycling machines to battery makers and recyclers, rather than recycling batteries itself, will scale faster

$20.5M pre-Series B on top of about $15M raised before; a second Series B part due in about nine months

Green Li-ion says its machines are the size of a small house. The Singapore-based startup had raised about $15 million before this round and, after about three years, reached a $187M post-money valuation.

CEO Leon Farrant said the startup split its Series B into two parts, this raise and another in about nine months, because with relatively little funding to date it needed to draw a line in the sand and set a valuation increase for the larger portion. It licenses its technology to battery makers and recyclers including Aleon and TES (owned by SK), and aims to make 50 recycling units a year from two factories in Houston and Singapore.

Green Li-ion had raised only about $15M, small for building house-sized machines

Lithium demand is high and mining is environmentally damaging, increasing interest in recycling

Licensing the technology avoids operating recycling plants itself

A split Series B sets a valuation step-up before the bigger raise

Splitting the Series B let a young company lock in a higher valuation for a small tranche before raising the larger one.

As of 2023-03-17 Green Li-ion had a $187M post-money valuation, a second Series B tranche planned in about nine months and a goal of 50 units a year. The claim of recycling 100% of used lithium batteries is the company's own.