Lithium at Umicore

The majority of lithium produced today ends up in electric vehicle batteries. It is used to produce cathode active materials, either in the form of lithium carbonate or hydroxide. Lithium’s unique properties – such as its extremely light weight – enable a very high energy density, meaning EV batteries can store a lot of energy without taking up much space. These same properties have also made lithium a reliable material for everyday rechargeable electronics, such as smartphones, tablets or laptops.  

Battery energy storage systems (BESS) are also a fast-growing application for lithium. 

With more unpredictable renewables plugging into the grid, BESS play an increasingly important role in stabilising the grid and offsetting peaks or lows in energy supply. They can also be installed beside energy-intensive data centres. There are different types of batteries available to store these high quantities of energy – from lithium iron phosphate (LFP) to lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxides (NMC) – but the common factor between them is their use of lithium, showing just how foundational an element it is. 

Umicore delivers high-performance NMC cathode active materials to a variety of markets, including EVs, portable electronics and energy storage. We also use lithium in our metal carboxylates business to produce lithium stearate, which goes into lubricants such as oils and greases. Through our patented pyro-hydro technology, we can recover over 90% of lithium from battery waste, where we specialise in recycling battery production scrap and end-of-life batteries. This offers an effective solution to support a circular battery economy.