Spain's recycling sector expands with first lithium battery plant and push for waste‑to‑energy upgrades

Urbaser has begun construction of the Iberian Peninsula's first lithium‑battery recycling facility in Cubillos del Sil, León. The €40 million plant, funded in part by €6.3 million from the EU's NextGenerationEU programme, will process 60,000–200,000 batteries a year and achieve more than 20,000 tonnes of material recovery annually. It is slated to start operations in the second half of 2027, creating 50 direct jobs and around 200 indirect positions, and is presented as a step toward European strategic autonomy in critical raw materials. Urbaser plans further sites in Zaragoza, southern Spain and Portugal.

Meanwhile, Veolia highlighted the Leeds waste‑to‑energy plant in the United Kingdom as a model for modernising Spain's ageing waste‑valorisation infrastructure. Veolia notes that only 10‑12% of Spanish municipal waste is currently energy‑recovered, far below the EU‑target range of 25‑35%. The company estimates Spain will need 15‑25 new facilities and upgrades to its roughly 30‑year‑old existing plants. The Leeds facility processes 214,000 tonnes of waste annually, generating electricity and district‑heating steam, and demonstrates high efficiency through pre‑combustion metal recovery and high plant availability.