Summary: Ascend Elements, a Massachusetts-based recycling startup, has opened the largest electric vehicle (EV) battery recycling plant in North America in Covington, Georgia. The plant can process 30,000 metric tons of input each year, equivalent to breaking down the battery packs from 70,000 EVs annually. The facility accepts used lithium-ion batteries and scrap materials from battery factories, including SK Battery America's plant in Commerce, Georgia. The recycling plant is an early example of a nationwide movement to cost-effectively recycle and repurpose EV batteries as more and more drivers go electric. Recycling can deliver new battery materials without the expense and environmental impact of new mining.