OIA invests in US li-ion batteries recycling firm

Oman Investment Authority (OIA) has announced a stake in Ascend Elements, a United States firm specialised in recycling lithium-ion (li-ion) batteries used in electric vehicles (EV).

With this development, OIA endeavours to enhance its ‘generations portfolio’ in a bid to achieve fiscal sustainability. It is also in pursuance of OIA’S quest to access new investment sectors that respond to global trends.

Ibrahim bin Said al Eisri, Director - Private Equity at OIA, said, “We are pleased to partner with Ascend Elements to develop and transform the li-ion battery recycling industry globally. The investment in Ascend aligns well with OIA’S strategy of investing in transformative companies in sectors which complement Oman Vision 2040 priorities.”

He added that this competitive, rapidly growing sector enjoys support in the US, the United Kingdom and Europe. “It offers OIA an objective to enter into partnerships with international partners and investors, with rewarding revenues in the pipeline.”

Ascend Elements has developed a new technique in EV battery recycling that focuses on sustainable use of waste from liion batteries and converts these

into high-performance batteries for EVS. This technique reduces the cost of recycling electric batteries by 50 per cent and cuts

down carbon emissions by 87 per cent.

After OIA’S investment, the company received a subsidy of Us$480mn from the US government, represented by the Department of Energy, as part of an

initiative to support the EV battery sector. This boosted the

firm’s market value and enabled it to enter into partnerships with a number of EV battery firms and automobile brands, including Jaguar, Land Rover, Ford and Tesla.