Ace Green Recycling (see Pulse 2.0 profile here) and Athena Technology Acquisition Corp. II announced a $32 million private investment in public equity financing to support their proposed business combination, with the combined entity expected to list on the Nasdaq under the ticker AGXI upon completion of the transaction.
The PIPE investment includes participation from sector-focused institutional investors and represents a key milestone in advancing the companies’ merger plans. The proceeds are expected to fund the development of Ace Green Recycling’s Texas facility, expand its global operations, and support commercialization of its next-generation battery recycling technologies.
Ace Green Recycling is focused on building sustainable solutions for end-of-life battery processing, including lithium-ion and lead batteries used in electric vehicles, electronics, and energy storage systems. Its platform leverages modular, fully electrified processes designed to eliminate Scope 1 emissions, positioning the company as a contributor to a cleaner and more resilient supply chain for critical battery materials.
The financing also supports the company’s broader strategy to strengthen domestic supply chains and enable a circular economy for battery materials, an increasingly important priority as global demand for electrification continues to grow.
Concurrent with the completion of the proposed merger, Ace expects to receive approximately $32 million in gross proceeds from the PIPE financing before expenses. The company plans to allocate capital toward infrastructure development, operational expansion, and potential acquisitions.
Nishchay Chadha founded the company alongside Dr. Vipin Tyagi, focusing on advancing sustainable recycling technologies for critical materials. The company’s solutions, including its GREENLEAD and LithiumFirst platforms, are designed to replace traditional recycling processes with lower-emission alternatives.
Isabelle Freidheim leads Athena, which specializes in executing public market transactions and partnerships with high-growth companies.
The transaction underscores continued investor interest in sustainable infrastructure and battery supply chain solutions, particularly as electrification and energy storage drive demand for efficient recycling and material recovery systems.
KEY QUOTES:
“This investment accelerates our mission to redefine battery recycling at a global scale. At Ace, we are deploying GREENLEAD and LithiumFirst as a new standard – fully electrified, Scope 1 emissions-free solutions designed to replace legacy processes and unlock a cleaner supply chain for critical materials. We believe that the future of electrification depends on how efficiently and sustainably we recover these resources, and this milestone brings us meaningfully closer to that future.”
Nishchay Chadha, CEO, Ace Green Recycling
“We believe that investor participation in this PIPE reflects confidence in Athena’s ability to bring together exceptional talent and partner with high-quality companies through complex transactions and the public market process. We also believe that Ace is well positioned to support a more resilient domestic supply chain for critical battery materials, and this marks an important step toward closing the Proposed Business Combination.”
Isabelle Freidheim, Chairman And CEO, Athena Technology Acquisition Corp. II
