EcoBatt, part of the EcoCycle Group, is opening a Melbourne plant to recover in-device batteries. | Photo Courtesy of Gloyd Recycling Solutions
A new Battery-in-Device Shredding (BIDS) facility in Melbourne will start operations shortly, according to its backers, who say the site will tackle the growing problem of batteries hidden in everyday products and the risks they pose when discarded.
EcoBatt, a subsidiary of the EcoCycle Group, this week unveiled the BIDS unit in Campbellfield in north Melbourne. The project received Australian $2 million (US $1,317,240) from the Victorian Government’s Circular Economy Infrastructure Fund, which is delivered by Sustainability Victoria under the Recycling Victoria plan. Environment Minister Steve Dimopoulos joined EcoCycle Group CEO Doug Rowe for the opening, which the company framed as a global first for embedded-battery processing.
The BIDS system was developed by Gloyd Recycling Solutions, a US firm focused on automating recovery of embedded power cells. The Melbourne installation is the first commercial implementation of the technology, following a commissioning period in recent weeks that drew state officials, customers and industry observers.
The plant uses specialized shredding and separation to remove embedded lithium-ion batteries from smaller items such as vapes, toys, power tools, electric toothbrushes and phones, then to recover metals and plastics for reuse. EcoBatt says the process can recover more than 90% of valuable materials and can handle up to about 2,000 pounds of devices per hour, addressing the need for smaller-scale recycling capabilities.
Rowe lauded the leap forward for battery recycling. “Every home has products with hidden batteries, and until now there hasn’t been a dedicated way to recover them at scale. This plant gives Australians confidence that when they recycle, those batteries are managed safely, onshore, and responsibly,” he said.
Spyro Kalos, EcoCycle’s national partnerships manager for Australia and New Zealand, said the facility answers what industry and government have been demanding. “Battery fires are now a weekly headline, too often we see them in rubbish trucks, recycling yards and transfer stations. Our partners want real solutions. This new plant delivers them, turning problem waste into recovered resources, ready for refinement and reuse,” he said.
EcoBatt already operates what it describes as the country’s largest battery collection footprint, with about 7,500 public drop-off points supported by UN-rated kiosks, bins and drums and a company-owned transport fleet. The Campbellfield facility is designed to complement that network to enable domestic collection and processing of batteries and battery-containing devices.
The company said embedded batteries remain among the most overlooked and dangerous waste streams, with incidents recorded in trucks, recycling yards and transfer stations when devices are tossed in general rubbish or commingled recycling. Supporters of the project say the plant gives retailers, councils and households a clear path to safer handling while conserving materials that can be refined and sent back into manufacturing.
EcoCycle credited partners who helped bring the project to completion, including Gloyd Recycling Solutions on design and build collaboration and former minister Christopher Pyne, who served as master of ceremonies at the opening. The company positioned the launch as evidence that innovation and policy can move in step when funding aligns with practical infrastructure that industry can use.
“The plant ensures a solution, so they are no longer a problem left in the bin, but part of Australia’s recycling future,” EcoBatt said.