Princeton NuEnergy (PNE) and Honda Motor Co. on Monday announced they signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to co-develop next-generation lithium-ion battery recycling. The agreement aims to secure a domestic circular supply chain for critical battery minerals while advancing U.S. energy independence.
The partnership formalizes years of technical validation that began in 2022. Since then, Honda and PNE have tested proprietary plasma-based “Direct Recycling” technologies on manufacturing scrap and end-of-life batteries.
PNE’s primary breakthrough lies in its Low-temperature Plasma-assisted Separation (LPAS™) process. Unlike traditional recycling methods—pyrometallurgy (smelting) and hydrometallurgy (acid leaching)—which break batteries down into raw chemical elements, PNE’s direct recycling restores the battery’s cathode active material (CAM) without destroying its crystal structure.
The MOU establishes a strategic framework for collaborative validation projects and sets the stage for potential future commercial-scale applications. This aligns with Honda’s global mandate to achieve carbon neutrality for all products and corporate activities by 2050.
“Our work with Honda shows a clear pathway for advancing circular battery materials,” Chao Yan, co-founder and CEO of Princeton NuEnergy said. “This MOU reflects a shared commitment to accelerating the next phase of sustainable, high-performance material production.”
The announcement follows a year of rapid expansion for PNE. In October 2025, the company received the “2025 Smart Move SC New Plant Award” for its flagship recycling facility in Chester, South Carolina. That facility—the first of its kind in the nation to produce advanced black mass and cathode active material at commercial scale—is projected to expand its capacity to 15,000 tons per year by late 2026.
