UAE partners with Bee’ah and Lohum to create regional battery lifecycle hub in Sharjah

This week, the UAE’s Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure announced the creation of a new joint venture, teaming up with Bee’ah, a regional sustainability leader, and Lohum, which is India’s biggest producer and recycler of sustainable lithium-ion battery materials. The goal? To establish a battery lifecycle facility in Sharjah. According to the official statement, the plant is set to start operations in 2026, initially processing around 1,500 tonnes annually, with plans to double that capacity within three years of opening.

The ministry explained that this partnership aims to tackle a growing challenge in the region: managing end-of-life electric vehicle (EV) batteries safely and efficiently, a critical concern as EV adoption picks up pace. The project was highlighted in reports by 25h.app and picked up by various UAE and regional media outlets, all quoting officials and company reps describing the initiative as part of the country’s broader strategy to cut down transport sector emissions.

S.E. Engineer Sharif Al‑Alam, Undersecretary for Energy and Petroleum Affairs, spoke on behalf of the ministry, framing the venture as a national effort to “localise advanced solutions” for EV battery management, emphasizing the importance of building a top-notch facility that meets the “highest technical and environmental standards.” He also pointed out that this plant would be a foundational piece in the UAE’s ambitions to become a major global hub for EV markets and related services.

Khaled Al Hariml, CEO and Vice Chairman of Bee’ah, called the project an extension of the group’s circular economy goals. He reaffirmed their commitment to “صفر نفايات” (zero waste), which underpins the company’s overall vision. Meanwhile, Lohum’s founder and CEO, Rajat Verma, expressed pride in expanding cooperation with Bee’ah. He emphasized the importance of Lohum’s approach, maximising battery lifespan before extracting valuable materials, rather than rushing into recycling.

The partners mentioned that the plant will operate on a “الدورة الكاملة” (full cycle) model. This includes safely reusing and repurposing used EV batteries, then disassembling them carefully to recover critical materials. Advocates for the project argue that prioritising reuse before heavy recycling significantly lowers lifecycle emissions and resource consumption, while also creating local value chains for battery services, remanufacturing, and materials supply.

Industry context: demand, resource flows, and policy drivers
Market data cited in related articles highlights how timely this investment really is. An earlier UAE report noted that the country is actively stepping into the lithium industry to support sectors like energy storage, electronics, batteries, and downstream manufacturing. The global lithium market was estimated to be worth somewhere between $15 billion and $18 billion by 2025, and analysts expect lithium-ion battery revenue to grow strongly, especially in Asia-Pacific, which is poised to dominate the market.

The data also shows that the lithium-ion battery industry is shifting from early-stage to a much more industrial scale. This growth is driven largely by increasing EV adoption, expanding renewable energy storage, and regional industrial policies aimed at reducing reliance on imported raw materials. For the UAE, which has set ambitious decarbonisation targets for transportation, developing local capacity for battery lifecycle services can help cut import costs, lower emissions from logistics, and generate skilled employment opportunities.

Operational model and regional significance
The partners explained that the Sharjah facility will provide a staged process for batteries in the Gulf region: first, reusing batteries with remaining useful life in less-demanding applications, then dismantling degraded units to recover key materials. This approach mirrors international best practices, maximizing reuse and cascade use before resorting to shredding or metallurgical recovery.

According to reports from local media, this project is expected to serve as a regional hub for battery lifecycle services, reinforcing Sharjah’s industrial profile and furthering the UAE’s goal of becoming a major center for EVs and battery-related services. The venture is seen as likely to attract investment in testing, second-life applications, and downstream processing of recovered materials down the line.

Commercial and environmental impacts
From a business standpoint, having local processing capabilities reduces logistical hurdles associated with transporting spent batteries, which tend to carry higher value components, and helps keep more of these valuable materials within Gulf supply chains. Policymakers argue that this setup will lower overall lifecycle costs for EV fleets and accelerate the rollout of second-life energy storage solutions.

On the environmental side, studies referenced by the partners suggest that reusing battery packs before recycling them can cut carbon emissions significantly, compared with immediate recycling. Bee’ah frames this within its circular economy strategy, and Lohum’s focus on extending battery life also points towards tangible emission reduction and resource conservation.

Caveats and outlook
Of course, many details remain unclear , like the specifics of the financial arrangements, technology choices, or timelines for permits and construction. The plan to double capacity within three years is quite ambitious and depends on a steady inflow of batteries and clear regulations concerning the handling, cross-border movement, and management of used batteries.

Based on regional media reports, the ministry and their partners are positioning this as a first-mover project for the UAE. If the facility can hit its target throughput and scale reuse pathways successfully, it might pave the way for larger battery recycling and second-life markets across the Gulf. For now, though, this project serves as a pretty interesting example of how policy, industry strategy, and private-sector innovation can come together to address the environmental and material challenges of the EV transition.

Source: Noah Wire Services