Key Takeaways:
A patented battery recycling process that recovers 99.6% of critical metals from spent lithium-ion batteries has won Chinese inventors the European Inventor Award 2026, validating a technology that could reshape the EV battery supply chain.
The European Patent Office awarded Xie Yinghao and Yu Haijun, both from Guangdong Brunp Recycling Technology, the Non-EPO Countries category and the Popular Prize at a ceremony in Berlin on July 2. Their directed recycling technology converts spent lithium nickel-cobalt-manganese oxide (NCM) cathodes directly into battery-grade materials, bypassing the lengthy chemical-intensive steps of conventional recycling.
"It is a tremendous honor for our team's smart battery recycling technology to win the European Inventor Award 2026 in the Non-EPO Countries category," Yu Haijun, co-inventor and key developer of the Reverse Product Positioning Design and Directed Recycling Technologies concepts, said. "This breakthrough comes from two decades of dedicated research into the circular economy."
The process achieves recovery rates of 99.6% for nickel, cobalt and manganese and 96.5% for lithium, according to company data. It cuts acid and alkali consumption by 73%, shortens processing steps by more than 18% and produces cathode materials with a 61% lower carbon footprint compared with conventional production methods. The International Energy Agency estimates more than 2,000 gigawatt-hours of lithium-ion battery capacity was added globally between 2018 and 2023, powering roughly 40 million electric vehicles — creating a growing stream of spent batteries that need recycling.
Why this matters for the battery supply chain
The technology addresses a structural bottleneck in the EV industry. Lithium, nickel and cobalt are classified as critical raw materials by both the European Union and the United States, yet recycling rates for lithium-ion batteries remain low. Brunp's directed recycling approach preserves the functional structure of cathode materials rather than breaking them down entirely, reducing the energy and chemical inputs needed to produce new batteries.
Brunp, founded in 2005 and integrated into Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd.'s ecosystem in 2015, has scaled the technology across global battery supply chains. The company now supplies regenerated ternary cathode materials to major automotive manufacturers, creating a closed-loop system that reduces dependence on virgin mining. CATL, the world's largest battery maker, trades at roughly 20 times forward earnings on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, and its control of Brunp's recycling output could lower its raw material procurement costs over time.
Competitive and investment implications
The award signals growing recognition that battery recycling is not a niche environmental effort but a core industrial capability. Competitors including GEM Co. Ltd. and Redwood Materials in the US are pursuing similar goals, though Brunp's published recovery rates of 99.6% for nickel, cobalt and manganese set a high benchmark. Redwood, backed by Amazon and Ford, has not disclosed comparable recovery data for direct cathode regeneration.
For investors, the implication is twofold. First, companies with proprietary recycling technology gain a cost advantage as battery raw material prices remain volatile — lithium carbonate prices swung from $80,000 per ton in late 2022 to below $15,000 in early 2025 before recovering. Second, regulatory tailwinds are strengthening: the EU's Battery Regulation, effective August 2023, mandates minimum recycled content levels for new industrial and EV batteries starting in 2031, creating a captive market for companies like Brunp.
The European Inventor Award jury, composed of former finalists, selected winners across four categories plus the Lifetime Achievement distinction. Other 2026 winners included German engineer Rainer Marquardt for the Modular Multilevel Converter used in high-voltage power transmission, and Irish-British scientist Sir Adrian Hill for the R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
