Turning orange peels into battery materials

This article is a part of Startup Spotlight, a series that features young, up-and-coming startups.

Photo credit: AraBat

Growing up in southern Italy, Raffaele Nacchiero watched his grandparents find a second life for everything, including orange peels. Years later, while studying the circular economy, he noticed that discarded electronics held valuable critical minerals.

This contrast inspired him to launch AraBat. The startup turns agricultural waste into a resource to extract these metals.

😟 Problem

The world generated 62 million tonnes of e-waste in 2022, leaving US$62 billion worth of recoverable materials unaccounted for. E-waste recycling meets just 1% of global rare earth demand.

Manufacturers face high disposal costs and rely heavily on China, which refines 90% of the world’s rare earths. New regulations will also soon mandate minimum recycled mineral content in electronics.

💡 Solution

AraBat developed the patented AraMet process to recover critical metals using natural organic acids and agri-food waste. The startup offers several capabilities:

• It operates below 90 degrees Celsius and completes leaching in about one hour.
• The system recovers lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, and rare earths as materials ready for the supply chain.
• It produces zero sulfur oxide or nitrogen oxide emissions, keeping lifecycle carbon output low.

Image credit: AraBat

📊 Market size

Recovered critical minerals belong to a market worth about US$420 billion a year. The secondary supply of these minerals is currently valued at over US$50 billion. Demand is growing rapidly alongside EV manufacturing.

🤝 Team

• Raffaele Nacchiero. Co-founder and CEO. He holds a PhD in management engineering and leads strategy and partnerships.
• Leonardo Binetti. Co-founder and CTO. He holds a PhD in engineering and leads process development.
• Leonardo Renna. Co-founder and CFO. He specializes in green finance and leads financial planning.
• Giovanni Miccolis. Co-founder and head of operations. He is an engineering expert who runs pilot operations.
• Vincenzo Scarano. Co-founder and head of marketing. He drives brand strategy and international visibility.

🚀 Traction

• AraBat signed a proof-of-concept agreement with Japanese electronic components manufacturer Taiyo Yuden.
• The startup achieves 95% lithium recovery at lab scale with 95% product purity.
• A pilot line is scaling up toward one tonne per year by January 2027.
• The company won awards including the Hello Tomorrow Top 100 Deep Tech and TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200.

🏆 Competition

Battery recyclers like Redwood Materials and magnet recyclers like HyProMag rely on high temperatures or strong mineral acids.

💰 Financials

🚩 Risks