BASF’s Schwarzheide, Germany, battery-recycling project is no longer merely a construction plan. The company announced commercial operation of its black-mass plant on June 3, 2025. Located in Brandenburg, the facility is designed to process up to 15,000 metric tons a year of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and battery-production scrap—an amount BASF compares with roughly 40,000 electric-vehicle batteries.
The project at a glance
| Item | Verified detail |
|---|---|
| Location | Schwarzheide, Brandenburg, Germany |
| Commercial start | June 3, 2025 |
| Announced annual capacity | Up to 15,000 metric tons |
| Feedstock | End-of-life lithium-ion batteries and battery-production scrap |
| BASF’s comparison | Approximately 40,000 EV batteries per year |
| Original target | Early 2024 startup, announced in 2022 |
The capacity and vehicle-equivalence figures are announced or approximate values, not evidence of actual 2026 throughput. BASF described the facility as one of Europe’s largest commercial black-mass plants; that characterization comes from BASF itself. The original construction announcement is available in BASF’s June 2022 release, while the operating date and process description are in its June 2025 announcement.
What the Schwarzheide plant actually produces
Black mass is an intermediate, not a finished battery material
Batteries are discharged, dismantled, shredded and mechanically separated. The resulting metal-rich concentrate is called black mass. It contains valuable quantities of lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese, but it is not pure metal, battery-grade chemical or cathode active material.
That distinction matters. The commercial Schwarzheide facility is verified as a mechanical-processing and black-mass production plant. Producing black mass does not by itself complete the route from a used battery to refined materials for a new cell.
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What happens downstream
- End-of-life batteries and production scrap are collected.
- Battery packs are safely discharged and dismantled.
- Mechanical treatment creates black mass and separates other components.
- Chemical or hydrometallurgical processing recovers individual metals.
- Recovered materials may become feedstock for new cathode active material (CAM).
- CAM is used in new batteries.
BASF operates a prototype metal refinery at Schwarzheide for developing and optimizing hydrometallurgical recovery of lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese and copper. BASF says the technology could later be scaled, but the sources available through August 16, 2026, do not establish that a full-scale commercial metal refinery is operating at the site. The prototype announcement is documented at BASF’s 2024 release.
Which batteries can it process?
BASF’s public description covers end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and battery-production scrap. It does not publish, in the cited announcements, a complete acceptance specification for every chemistry, cell format, pack size or damaged-battery condition. Therefore, the plant should not be described as accepting every type of battery without qualification.
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Production scrap can be more uniform than mixed retired vehicle batteries. That difference affects safety procedures, contamination, yields, operating costs and the reliability of feedstock. The announced 15,000-ton figure is a nameplate-style capacity, not a disclosed split between scrap and end-of-life batteries.
How Schwarzheide fits BASF’s battery strategy
BASF is developing Schwarzheide as a combined battery-materials and recycling site. The company opened a CAM production facility and recycling center there in 2023, as described in its site announcement.
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- Easy and Convenient Recycling Process -- Our kit offers an easy process. You will receive a container in a box, and a free return label. Just drop your batteries, attach the label, and send for recycling—no stress or extra fees.
- Prevention of Landfill Disposal -- Recycling makes sure that batteries don't end up in landfills. This prevents dangerous materials from getting into the environment and helps keep our ecosystems safe.
- Recycling You Can Trust -- We are certified recycling experts who share our dedication to the environment. Your batteries will be handled responsibly, reducing the negative impact of improper disposal.
- Be a Part of Something Bigger -- Recycling batteries isn't just responsibility – it's a step towards a circular economy. By doing your part, you're helping to conserve valuable resources and lessen the demand for new materials.
The intended model is an integrated value chain: collect batteries and scrap, make black mass, refine its metals, and potentially return those materials to CAM manufacturing. That is a strategic objective, not proof that every kilogram entering the commercial plant is already being converted into new cathode material on site.
From announcement to commercial operation
| Date | Development | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| July 2021 | Prototype battery-recycling plant announced for Schwarzheide | Process development for future commercial recycling |
| June 20, 2022 | Commercial black-mass plant announced | 15,000-ton annual plan; early 2024 startup target |
| June 29, 2023 | CAM and recycling center opened | Established the site as an integrated battery-materials hub |
| 2024 | Prototype metal refinery began operating | Testing chemical recovery of battery metals |
| June 3, 2025 | Black-mass plant entered commercial operation | Project moved beyond construction and commissioning |
| April 15, 2026 | TSR Group and BLC/Rhenus cooperation announced | Expanded dismantling, discharging, logistics and market access |
The earlier target and later operating date establish a schedule change, but BASF’s cited announcements do not explain its cause. The 2021 announcement is at BASF’s prototype-plant page. The 2026 upstream partnership is described at BASF Battery Materials.
Rank #4
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Why the investment matters
European supply security
Recycling can supplement primary supplies of strategic metals and reduce reliance on imported raw materials. A 15,000-ton facility is significant, but it is one plant in a regional network—not a solution capable of handling Germany’s or Europe’s entire future EV-battery waste stream.
Circularity and regulation
BASF presents recycling as support for circular-economy goals and customer obligations under the EU Battery Regulation. Compliance depends on the whole chain: eligible feedstock, traceability, recovery rates, recycled-content accounting, reporting and applicable implementation dates. Operation of this plant alone does not guarantee compliance for every customer or battery.
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Recovering metals may reduce demand for new mining, shorten supply routes and lower emissions compared with relying exclusively on primary materials. Actual results depend on electricity, transport, chemistry, contamination, energy use, process yields and whether recycled output displaces virgin material. No facility-specific lifecycle reduction should be inferred without a published assessment.
The 2026 upstream partnership
The cooperation with TSR Group and the BLC joint venture involving Rhenus Automotive addresses activities before black-mass production: battery collection, discharging, dismantling, logistics and access to additional European markets. This matters because a plant’s economics depend on obtaining safe, consistent and legally transportable feedstock, not simply on having installed capacity.
Commercial and technical questions still open
- Utilization: BASF has announced capacity, but not plant-specific 2026 throughput in the cited sources.
- Feedstock mix: The relative shares of production scrap and retired vehicle batteries are not stated.
- Recovery performance: Public announcements do not provide commercial recovery rates for each metal at Schwarzheide.
- Refinery status: The metal refinery is identified as a prototype; a full-scale commercial refinery at the site is not established by the cited material.
- Safety: Damaged or improperly discharged lithium-ion batteries create fire and handling risks.
- Market economics: Lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese prices can change the value of recovered material relative to virgin supply.
- Technology change: Shifting cathode chemistries alter the metal content and processing requirements of future feedstock.
- Regulation and logistics: Waste classification, transport, documentation, traceability and recycled-content rules add operational complexity.
What the project does—and does not—prove
BASF has moved from a 2022 construction announcement to commercial black-mass production in Germany. The facility provides a regional route for processing lithium-ion batteries and manufacturing scrap, and it sits alongside CAM production and a prototype refining operation.
It does not, on the evidence cited, prove that BASF is already running a fully commercial battery-to-new-battery loop at Schwarzheide, recovering all listed metals at industrial scale, or operating at its maximum annual capacity. Those outcomes depend on feedstock, downstream refining, recovery yields, customer qualification and market conditions.
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