American Battery Technology Company (ABTC) has been awarded a $1 million collaborative agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory to advance its novel lithium hydroxide manufacturing technology. The partnership aims to accelerate the commercialization of ABTC’s electrochemical processing system, which significantly reduces the use of harmful chemical agents in lithium production.
“We are committed to developing the next generation of critical mineral manufacturing technologies and to bringing these technologies to commercialization in our domestic-US facilities,” said Ryan Melsert, CEO of ABTC, in a July 15, 2025 press release.
Unlike traditional lithium refining, which relies heavily on chemical reagents and generates substantial waste, ABTC’s proprietary electrochemical approach offers a cleaner alternative. The new method can produce high-quality lithium hydroxide—a key material in EV batteries—while cutting operational costs and minimizing environmental impact.
This development comes as the U.S. pushes to secure its battery supply chain amid rising EV demand. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), lithium demand is expected to grow over 40-fold by 2040 under a net-zero emissions scenario. Yet today, the U.S. supplies less than 2% of global lithium, largely relying on imports from Chile, Argentina, and China.
As part of the collaboration, ABTC will leverage two of Argonne’s most powerful tools:
The real-time insights generated from this pairing will enable ABTC to build predictive models and optimize its lithium hydroxide conversion technology for years of operation.
This initiative is one of several ABTC partnerships with DOE national labs, including projects with Idaho National Laboratory and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. These collaborations align with ongoing federal efforts to secure domestic supplies of critical minerals and strengthen America’s battery manufacturing infrastructure.
Recent Department of Energy investments have emphasized reducing reliance on foreign supply chains and promoting innovation in U.S.-based refining, recycling, and raw material sourcing. ABTC’s partnerships support these goals by demonstrating scalable, lower-impact lithium processing technologies.
ABTC plans to integrate the new processing system into two key projects:
ABTC’s electrochemical processing system could play a pivotal role in reshaping how lithium is sourced and refined in the U.S. By addressing cost, waste, and environmental concerns, the technology supports both sustainability goals and national energy security. With global competition for battery metals intensifying, public-private collaborations like this may be the key to achieving long-term resilience in clean tech supply chains.
