Blue Whale Materials (BWM) has commissioned its baseline black mass production facility in Bartlesville, Oklahoma—an early but notable step in expanding U.S.-based recycling capacity.
The plant, once fully operational, is designed to process 14,000 tones of lithium-ion battery scrap annually, producing Blacksand™, BWM’s proprietary high-purity black mass containing cobalt, nickel, and lithium. While small relative to projected national demand—Benchmark Mineral Intelligence estimates the U.S. will require more than 500,000 tones of black mass equivalent by the end of the decade—the facility marks a shift toward domestic recovery rather than dependence on foreign processors.
Black mass processing remains a bottleneck in the U.S. critical minerals ecosystem. Most collected battery waste is currently exported to Asia, where refining capacity is concentrated. BWM’s move to build refining capability in Oklahoma directly addresses this gap, though at a scale that will need significant expansion to alter the trade balance. The company has secured more than $55 million in U.S. Department of Energy funding to support a four-year expansion project that would lift processing capacity to 50,000 tonnes per year. That figure, while meaningful, still represents less than 10% of anticipated U.S. demand by 2030.
From Scrap to Precursor
The Bartlesville facility is designed around producing Blacksand™, a dry mixed-metal precursor with low impurities, positioned as a feedstock for downstream refiners. Unlike hydrometallurgical or pyrometallurgical approaches used in Asia, BWM emphasizes a dry process that reduces impurity loads early in the chain, potentially lowering refining costs. The company’s strategy is to integrate this black mass production into a full battery recycling process, spanning cells to packs, slated for commissioning in the first quarter of 2026.
Whether this technical approach delivers consistent yields at scale remains a key question. Recycling economics hinge on recovery efficiency, energy use, and market pricing for cobalt, nickel, and lithium—all volatile factors. Nickel and cobalt prices, for instance, have dropped more than 30% over the past two years, challenging recyclers to maintain margins.
The U.S. government’s investment in BWM aligns with broader policy objectives to secure domestic supply chains for clean energy technologies. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) offers production tax credits for domestically sourced critical minerals, positioning recyclers like BWM to benefit from regulatory tailwinds. Yet competition is tightening: Redwood Materials, Ascend Elements, and Li-Cycle have all announced capacity expansions with targets well above BWM’s initial 14,000-tonne baseline.
BWM distinguishes itself with an integrated model that extends beyond black mass into collection, logistics, and second-life testing for end-of-life batteries. By offering a closed-loop service, the company aims to capture more value from each stage of the battery lifecycle. This approach may help insulate it from commodity price swings, but its success depends on execution at scale and its ability to secure long-term supply contracts with OEMs and battery manufacturers.
