On July 16, the opening ceremony for Hong Kong’s first electric vehicle battery resource recovery plant – a full-line EPC project undertaken by CMECHK, a subsidiary of CMEC Group – was held at the EcoPark in Tuen Mun. Chen Jun, Deputy General Manager and Chief Compliance Officer of CMEC Group, attended the ceremony. Mr. John Lee Ka-chiu, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, delivered a video address, in which he highly commended the project’s significance in improving Hong Kong’s retired battery treatment system and promoting green and low-carbon development.

Mr. Tse Chin-wan, Secretary for Environment and Ecology of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; Dr. Au Sze-man, Acting Director of Environmental Protection; Mr. Cheung Po-chung, Chief Operating Officer of CLP Power; and Ms. Yu Hong, Chairperson of Zhongzihuan Group Int’l. Development Co., Limited, attended the ceremony to jointly witness the project’s completion.

Closing the Loop – Setting a New Benchmark for Hong Kong’s Circular Economy

With the rapid growth of new energy vehicles in Hong Kong, the number of retired EV batteries has been increasing steadily, yet the city has long lacked large-scale resource recovery capabilities. Once operational, the project will close the entire value chain from battery use to recycling and resource regeneration, enabling efficient local recycling of used power batteries. The high-purity black powder produced can be reused in lithium battery manufacturing, providing crucial support for Hong Kong to become a regional hub for battery circular utilization.

Chief Executive John Lee noted that the project aligns with policy initiatives including Hong Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2050 and the Updated Version of the Hong Kong Roadmap on Popularisation of Electric Vehicles, and has been incorporated into The Chief Executive’s 2025 Policy Address, giving strong impetus to Hong Kong’s carbon neutrality goals.

Overcoming Technical Challenges – Forging an EPC Model for Battery Recycling

During project implementation, the team faced challenges including the lack of unified industry standards, long delivery lead times for imported equipment, and stringent local environmental regulations. Leveraging its Hong Kong platform advantages, CMECHK brought together domestic and international expertise, integrating mature international processes with China’s supply chain strengths to deliver a compliant, efficient, and cost-effective turnkey EPC solution, creating Asia’s first fully automated EV battery recycling production line fully compliant with Hong Kong regulations.

The project independently developed a process simulation system for battery recycling, enabling digital management including production line simulation, parameter optimization, and risk prediction – providing technical support for replication in similar overseas projects. Currently, the purity of the regenerated black powder has reached a stable 98%, with core separation and purification technologies achieving industry-leading performance, effectively reducing the consumption of virgin lithium resources and contributing to green and low-carbon circular development.

Synergistic Empowerment – Expanding the Green Industry Landscape

As a significant achievement of internal collaboration within SINOMACH and the group’s expansion into the green circular economy sector, the project fully leveraged Hong Kong’s international platform. It brought together nine SINOMACH subsidiaries including Guangzhou Kinte, Tianjin Electric Science Institute, China United Engineering Corporation (CUC), CMIE, CHPI, and the Macao branch of SINOCONST, integrating design consulting, process R&D, equipment manufacturing, intelligent control, and automated operations across the industrial chain. This realized a proven model of “overseas platform leadership, SINOMACH coordinated support, and full-chain EPC delivery,” fully demonstrating the synergy advantages of the SINOMACH industrial chain.

Since its completion, the project has attracted widespread attention from all sectors of society, with coverage by major media including TVB, Ta Kung Pao, Hong Kong Wen Wei Po, Bauhinia Web, Bauhinia Magazine, and Financial Times (Hong Kong edition). Industry observers agree that the project marks a pivotal shift in Hong Kong’s green transport industry chain – moving from the “consumption stage” to the “circular stage” – and ends the long-standing reliance on overseas facilities for processing retired EV batteries.

CMECHK has now entered into a letter of intent for strategic cooperation with King’s View New Energy Holdings Limited to deepen collaboration in battery recycling, green data centers, and circular economy infrastructure, further expanding into green markets in Hong Kong, Macao, and beyond.

Rooted in Hong Kong, backed by SINOMACH and CMEC Group, connecting with the Greater Bay Area, and radiating to overseas markets, this battery recycling plant represents both a high-quality engineering deliverable by CMECHK to its client and the community, and a significant milestone for SINOMACH in leveraging Hong Kong’s international platform, coordinating supply chain expansion, and delivering integrated projects through CMEC Group. Looking ahead, CMECHK will continue to play its role as a bridgehead in Hong Kong, leveraging proven processes, integrated engineering capabilities, and SINOMACH’s collaborative strengths to deepen its presence in the circular economy, new energy, and energy storage sectors, contributing to the high-quality development of SINOMACH’s international green businesses.