Ola Electric S1 Air battery recycling in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu
Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu does not take whole packs. It receives black mass made from Ola Electric S1 Air modules that failed grading, and turns it into battery-grade salts.
Pack value at 80% SOH
141 USD
Hybrid Split
Second-life share
47%
At 80% SOH
Site capacity
32,000 TPA
Hydrometallurgical Refinery
Cities served
10
From Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu
Where a Ola Electric S1 Air pack goes from Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu
- 1
Collected via Zaheerabad, Telangana
Whole packs enter the network at Hyderabad — Zaheerabad Recovery Campus, 581 km away, where they are weighed and de-energised.
- 2
Graded at Hosur, Tamil Nadu
Modules travel 230 km to Bengaluru — Hosur Diagnostics Centre for capacity, resistance and impedance testing across all 2 modules.
- 3
Second life at Butibori, Maharashtra
At 80% SOH about 47% of the pack qualifies for reuse and goes to Nagpur — Butibori Second-Life Works (893 km). Good — grade-A modules above 80% SOH qualify for commercial-scale BESS strings.
- 4
Refining at Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu
Black mass from failed modules is leached and refined here into battery-grade nickel, cobalt and lithium salts.
| Stage | Facility | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Nearest intake yard | Hyderabad — Zaheerabad Recovery Campus | 581 km |
| Nearest grading bench | Bengaluru — Hosur Diagnostics Centre | 230 km |
| Nearest second-life works | Nagpur — Butibori Second-Life Works | 893 km |
Faster option
Inside the Ola Electric S1 Air battery
The Ola Electric S1 Air (2023) carries a 3 kWh NMC 811 Cylindrical 2170 pack with 2 modules at 48 V, weighing roughly 17 kg. High-nickel cylindrical cells with the strongest hydrometallurgical recovery credit per tonne of black mass.
| Service year | SOH | Grade | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 2 | 95.2% | A — BESS ready | USD 189 |
| Year 4 | 90.9% | A — BESS ready | USD 181 |
| Year 6 | 86.6% | A — BESS ready | USD 174 |
| Year 8 | 82.3% | B — Second life | USD 151 |
| Year 10 | 78% | B — Second life | USD 132 |
What the chemistry means here
How it ages
NMC 811 loses capacity through a mix of SEI growth, cathode surface reconstruction and micro-cracking of nickel-rich particles. Resistance climbs faster than in LFP, which matters as much as capacity for second-life duty.
Thermal behaviour
High-nickel NMC cathodes release oxygen as they decompose, so once runaway starts it is fast and energetic. Cylindrical 2170 cells vent through a designed rupture point, which helps, but cell-to-cell propagation inside a tightly packed module is the main hazard.
Handling NMC 811 (2170)
Collecting a Ola Electric S1 Air pack
3 kWh, 2 modules, about 17 kg — this is how the Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu team plans the job.
Removal
Removable packs are unclipped by hand; fixed packs are removed at the dealer bench with the frame supported.
Packaging
Packs travel in UN-approved steel or plastic cages with non-conductive dividers, typically dozens per cage.
Consolidation
Dealer and swap-station returns are aggregated at a single point so one collection clears many units.
Before the truck arrives
- Tape terminals and connectors on every pack
- Separate swollen or dropped packs into their own container
- Record serials in a single list per cage
- Store below 30% charge away from charging racks
Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu site notes
- Whole packs are not accepted; route them through a grading or integrated campus first and the black mass will follow.
- Black mass must arrive in sealed, labelled bulk bags with an assay report or at least a declared chemistry.
- Deliveries are scheduled against SEZ gate windows, and imported material needs customs paperwork before arrival.
- Moisture above the agreed limit is recorded at the weighbridge and reflected in settlement.
What this pack yields
lithium
0.17 kg
nickel
1.1 kg
cobalt
0.14 kg
manganese
0.13 kg
copper
0.55 kg
aluminium
0.46 kg
Refining-route estimate at 80% SOH. Measured module health on the bench sets the final split.
Rules in India
Battery Waste Management Rules 2022 (BWMR)
Regulator: Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and State Pollution Control Boards
The refinery is permitted by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board, with effluent, air emission and hazardous-chemical conditions typical of acid-leaching plants. As a registered recycler under the Battery Waste Management Rules 2022, it generates the recovery evidence that producers file on the CPCB EPR portal. Its SEZ location adds customs controls on any imported feed or exported product.
Ola Electric S1 Air in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu: common questions
Can I drop off a Ola Electric S1 Air battery at Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu?
Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu is a hydrometallurgical refinery and does not accept whole packs from customers. Book a collection and the pack enters the network at Zaheerabad, Telangana, 581 km away.
What happens to Ola Electric S1 Air modules after Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu?
Collected via Zaheerabad, Telangana, then Graded at Hosur, Tamil Nadu, then Second life at Butibori, Maharashtra, then Refining at Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu. At 80% SOH roughly 47% of the pack goes to second life and the rest is refined.
How should a Ola Electric S1 Air pack be prepared for pickup?
Tape terminals and connectors on every pack. Separate swollen or dropped packs into their own container. Record serials in a single list per cage. Store below 30% charge away from charging racks.
Which rules apply to Ola Electric S1 Air recycling in India?
Battery Waste Management Rules 2022 (BWMR), overseen by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and State Pollution Control Boards. Retired packs move as hazardous goods by road under central motor vehicle rules, and export needs Basel-compliant permissions.
Cities collected by Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu
Ola Electric S1 Air at other sites
Other two-wheeler packs at Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu
Retiring Ola Electric S1 Air packs near Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu?
Share pack counts and condition. The despatch desk confirms a collection window within one working day and sends the right packaging.