In a world steadily moving toward electrification, batteries are indispensable. But behind every charge lies a dirty secret: recycling these batteries is an environmental nightmare. Ace Green Recycling is on a mission to change that. With its game-changing, proprietary recycling technology, the company is redefining how the world handles toxic lead-acid and lithium-ion battery waste, sustainably and profitably.
A Clean Break from Smelting
Ace’s core innovation lies in its electrochemical process for recycling lead-acid batteries. Unlike the legacy method of smelting—which operates at extremely high temperatures and emits significant levels of carbon and heavy metals—Ace’s method works at room temperature and produces zero harmful emissions. This is not a science experiment; the technology has already been commercialized for lead-acid batteries and is now being piloted for lithium-ion recycling.
That alone positions Ace in a league of its own.
Smelting has long been the standard across the globe, yet it’s devastatingly polluting—especially in urban hotspots like Delhi, where unregulated battery recycling quietly chokes the air. Ace’s solution removes this bottleneck entirely, providing a scalable, regulation-compliant path forward, especially as countries like the US, South Korea, Australia, and the EU increasingly ban or restrict traditional smelting operations.
Why Climate Angels Invested
At Climate Angels, we back climate-tech disruptors with the potential to scale globally and create lasting environmental impact. Ace Green Recycling checked every box.
1. Massive Addressable Market:
Despite the rise of lithium-ion batteries, 95% of global battery production is still lead-acid—used in everything from cars to solar installations. The lead-acid battery market is expected to reach nearly $60 billion by 2026. That’s a lot of batteries, and even more waste. The need for clean recycling solutions is both urgent and enormous.
2. Proven Technology + Global Scalability:
Ace’s lead-acid tech has already been validated by major industrial players, including Schneider. The pilot for lithium-ion recycling is the next frontier, and early signs are promising. With its modular technology and trade-secret protected chemical formulation (which is virtually impossible to reverse-engineer), Ace is equipped to scale globally and license its tech across regulated markets.
3. Strong Strategic Co-Investors:
We’re co-investing with Circulate Capital—a respected global fund focused on circular economy ventures. Circulate has a track record of helping companies scale, as seen with Nepra’s $18M+ raise. Their presence de-risks our investment and validates the commercial potential of Ace’s model.
4. Founder-Market Fit:
Co-founders Nishchay Chadha and Vipin Tyagi bring deep domain expertise and a rare mix of operational, technical, and financial experience. Nishchay, with a background in mining and commodities trading, and Vipin, a PhD in mechanical engineering with a Wall Street stint under his belt, are a powerful team to build and scale this venture.
5. Competitive Moat:
Ace is the only player with a commercialized non-smelting solution for lead-acid batteries. Peers like Gravita, Chunxing, and STC still rely on polluting technologies. Meanwhile, players like AquaMetals and AEL Global are yet to commercialize. Even Redwood Materials, Tesla co-founder JB Straubel’s lithium recycling venture, has raised $700M but is lithium-only. Ace already has a head start in lead and a roadmap for lithium.
Closing Thoughts
Recycling is often the forgotten sibling in the sustainability conversation, overshadowed by energy generation and mobility. But without sustainable recycling, the transition to clean energy will create a new kind of pollution crisis.
Ace Green Recycling doesn’t just address that problem—it solves it with elegance, precision, and commercial savvy. The vision is bold: license the technology, set up JVs, acquire outdated recyclers, and build greenfield projects across geographies where environmental regulation increasingly favors clean tech.
For us at Climate Angels, backing Ace is more than a financial investment. It’s a bet on the future of green infrastructure, and a vote of confidence in the people and technology redefining it.
