Between February 5 and March 31, 2024, a preliminary consultation is to be held, under the aegis of the the French National Public Debate Commission (CNDP), on the project led by Orano and XTC New Energy for the manufacture and recycling of battery materials for electric vehicles in the Dunkirk area.
The project in brief
Following the announcement of their partnership on May 16, 2023, the Orano Group, a recognized international operator in the field of nuclear materials, and XTC New Energy, a company specialized in the production of cathode materials for batteries, are pursuing their joint project to build an integrated industrial site in France.
Focusing on both the upstream and downstream of the electric vehicle battery industry, this site will combine the production of battery materials with the recycling of scrap1 from electric vehicle battery manufacturing plants (gigafactories) and end-of-life batteries.
The project is situated on a plot of land allocated by the Grand Port Maritime de Dunkerque (GPMD) under a Call for Expressions of Interest (French AMI) process, located in the communes of Gravelines and Loon-Plage, and the industrial site will comprise 3 plants and shared buildings, as follows:
- A plant for the production of Cathode Active Material Precursors (P-CAM)2, comprising two production units with an annual capacity of 40,000 metric tons of P-CAM each (for a total of 80,000 metric tons);
- A plant for the production of Cathode Active Materials (CAM)3, comprising two production units with an annual capacity of 40,000 metric tons of CAM each (for a total of 80,000 metric tons), enabling the production of a total of 64 GWh of batteries (equivalent to the equipment of between 700,000 and 1,000,000 cars, depending on battery capacity);
- A plant to recycle production scrap from P-CAM, CAM and gigafactories, as well as end-of-life batteries. This plant will include a pre-treatment unit capable of processing 15,000 metric tons of battery modules per year, and a hydrometallurgy plant capable of recycling 20,000 metric tons of metal mass ("blackmass"4) by extracting the metals of interest (nickel, manganese, cobalt, lithium) they contain;
- An administrative center common to all three plants;
- Research and Development activities on P-CAM and CAM, with associated R&D centers.
The project involves two other co-contractors, Air Liquide France Industrie for the supply of oxygen and nitrogen, and RTE for the connection to the public power transmission grid.
It represents a total pre-tax investment of 1.5 billion euros (under 2023 economic conditions) and will be commissioned in several phases by the end of 2027, creating a projected 1,300 direct jobs.
Preliminary consultation
The preliminary consultation is being organized under the aegis of the French National Public Debate Commission (CNDP), which has appointed three guarantors - Anne-Marie Royal, Christophe Bacholle and Jean-Louis Laure - to assist with the preparation of the consultation procedures and ensure that they run smoothly.
As part of the consultation process taking place from February 5 to March 31 on the Orano and XTC New Energy project in the Dunkirk area, many events are scheduled throughout the region: public meetings, conference-debates, in-depth workshops, neighbourhood meetings, etc. At these meetings, and via the www.concertation-orano-xtcnewenergy.fr website, the public will be able to voice their opinions and exchange views with the project partners. The preliminary consultation will give rise to a report drawn up by the CNDP guarantors.
"The aim of this project led by Orano and XTC New Energy is to support the development of gigafactories by producing and recycling the materials used in the batteries. We are proud to contribute to the development of a new industrial sector in France, based in the Dunkirk area. We want the upcoming consultation to be an opportunity to present the stakes of this project, both in terms of economic and social development, and the conditions for its integration into the local area," explains Thomas Brion, Project Director for Orano.
"The project will be XTC New Energy's first outside China. We have been actively preparing for this consultation with our partners and are delighted to present this project and our know-how," adds Michael Wentao Liu, Director Europe and North America at XTC New Energy.
"As neutral and independent parties with regard to the project and the project co-owners, we will be attentive to the proper conduct of this participation procedure, keeping a watchful eye on the clarity and completeness of the information provided, and on the real possibility for everyone to take part in the various debate sessions, to express their arguments and formulate their questions", underline the guarantors.
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