The El Bayo industrial estate, in Cubillos del Sil, is the location of
nvoltthe company that, together with Endesa and Sertego, will build and develop the activity of the first electric vehicle recycling plant in the Iberian Peninsula.
This new facility, in whose construction
14 million euros will be investedis part of Endesa’s Futur-e plan, which aims to generate new industrial economic activity in El Bierzo, a region with which the company is closely linked due to its activity with the thermal power plant that was located in Cubillos del Sil and is currently in dismantling.
The new facility, which will occupy
an area of 15,000 square meterswill have the latest technology on an industrial scale thanks to an R&D program that has made it possible to implement improvements in the various solutions for extraction, diagnosis, discharge and recycling of battery components.
The installation will make it possible to identify the batteries that are still there
an additional useto which it will be possible to give a second life, and for the rest, an extraction process of the elements that compose them will be carried out, valorizing about 90% of everything.
Novolitio will be responsible for managing the collection of electric batteries in Spain and Portugal, their storage and transport to Cubillos del Sil, for their further processing in the new facilities, where
those batteries that cannot be reused they are electrically discharged, dismantled and subjected to a separation and crushing process. This will make it possible to recycle the materials present, such as aluminum, copper and plastics, as well as the “black mass”, which is the fraction rich in strategic metals, of great value in Europe, such as cobalt and nickel, both essential for battery production. The use of recycled metals significantly reduces the carbon footprint of the new batteries, making their production process more sustainable.
The plant, one of the projects approved by the Ministry of Ecological Transition, the Junta de Castilla y León, the Municipalities of Ponferrada and Cubillos del Sil, and the University of León,
will recycle 8,000 tons of batteries per year, which generates about 50 direct jobs for its operation.
Urbaser, which will participate in this initiative through Sertego, its subsidiary responsible for the comprehensive and sustainable management of industrial waste, is a leading environmental management company, present in 21 countries, an expert in
collection, storage and handling of waste. Sertego will be responsible for managing the 20 collection facilities from which the batteries for electric vehicles to be processed at the Cubillos del Sil plant will be delivered. Likewise, it will direct its operation and maintenance.
Endesa will not only lead the development of the project, but also contribute its management capacity and knowledge of electric mobility. With this initiative, it contributes to the relaunch of the Bierzo region and expresses its commitment to the circular economy.
Source: La Verdad

I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.