The Heritage Group and Heritage Environmental Services Inc. (collectively, "Heritage"), a leader in environmental and sustainability services, launched its new division, Heritage Battery Recycling (HBR), in late 2020 to address the growing market demand of safe, sustainable solutions for lithium-ion batteries near or at endof- life. HBR's goal is to recover and reuse critical battery precursor resources that exist in finite supply globally.
In collaboration with Romeo Power Inc., HBR will develop a battery reuse and recycling facility located in the southwestern U.S.
"By working directly with Romeo Power, we have a unique opportunity to provide a safe, environmentally sound end-of-life strategy for commercial truck manufacturers, commercial fleet managers and conscientious business owners who are investing in clean energy today," said Jeff Laborsky, CEO of Heritage. "We are proud to be part of this long-term sustainability collaboration."
To jump-start efficiencies in transportation and logistics for HBR's battery collection operations across North America, Heritage has partnered with Heritage- Crystal Clean Inc., a leading provider of parts cleaning, used oil re-refining, and hazardous and nonhazardous waste services. Together, Heritage and Crystal Clean bring HBR access to over 100,000 customer locations, 2,500 knowledgeable employees, a fleet of over 1,300 power units and 108 facility locations.
"The creation of HBR and our partnership with Crystal Clean reflects our 50-year legacy of pursuing sustainable solutions for our customers, and further demonstrates our commitment to achieving our environmental, social and governance goals," said Jeff Laborsky, CEO of Heritage. "Our two companies together combine the strengths of Crystal Clean's advanced collection capabilities with Heritage's safe processing expertise."
HBR is investing in technology, partnerships and people to help identify the highest and best use of reduced capacity electric vehicle batteries and establishing best practices for recycling or refurbishment. Heritage's experience with safely handling hazardous waste and managing total byproduct programs with many auto OEMs makes it a natural fit for facing this challenge.
Heritage also named Shane Thompson president of the new division.
"Shane is the right leader for HBR," said Laborsky. "His extensive background in battery end-of-life management makes him one of the world's leading experts in this rapidly evolving industry. We are confident that Shane's strong business relationships and deep understanding of the battery value chain will quickly position HBR as a market leader in North America."
"I was thrilled to be asked to join the team and launch HBR," said Thompson. "Batteries are a part of modern life, including in oil and gas. They use a lithium primary battery (thionyl chloride) in drilling operations -- the batteries go down the hole and are brought back from all over the world by oil service companies to be recycled. While HBR is focused on lithium ion batteries, we support battery recycling as an industry. We've reached an inflection point in the electrification of vehicles across North America, and as those spent battery units move to recycling or reuse opportunities, HBR will be ready to meet the demand."
For more information, visit www.heritage-enviro.com or call (877) 436-8778.
