SK ecoplant acquires global E-waste recycling firm TES

SK ecoplant CEO Park Kyung-il, right, and Rodney Muse, managing partner of Navis Capital Partners, hold a copy of a signed stock purchase agreement at Fullerton Hotel, Singapore, Monday. Courtesy of SK ecoplant

By Lee Kyung-min

SK ecoplant has acquired TES, a Singapore-based global electronic waste (E-waste) recycling firm, as part of a long-term plan to establish itself as the leader in the green service market, the firm said Monday. Electronic waste refers to discarded electrical or electronic devices.

The environmental business affiliate of SK Group bought a 100-percent stake in TES for $1 billion (1.19 trillion won) in a stock purchase agreement (SPA) signed between the CEO of SK ecoplant and his counterpart, Rodney Muse, the managing partner of Navis Capital Partners, the largest shareholder of TES.

SK ecoplant will be able to lead the E-waste market by helping to create a zero-waste, zero-pollution, circular economy, mostly by recycling used materials and making use of them as energy sources.

TES is the world's leading IT sustainable lifecycle services provider that operates 43 facilities located in 21 countries across Asia, North America and Europe, with a significant presence in key markets including the U.S., the U.K., Germany, China and Singapore. Its customers include many of the world's leading IT firms.

The SK affiliate will focus on IT asset disposition (ITAD) and battery recycling, two key business areas of TES, thereby expanding its presence in the E-waste treatment industry known for a high entry barrier due to intellectual property and data protection, as well as complex logistics and compliance rules.

The key area of focus will be ITAD, a practice encompassing the recycling of digital devices including laptops, desktop computers, tablets, data center cloud equipment and cell phones in ways that remove risks concerning compliance, data security and environmental responsibility.

Other priorities include battery recycling, which encompasses dismantling batteries from electronic devices and electric vehicles (EVs), and recovering components such as iron and aluminum before extracting rare metals such as lithium, cobalt and manganese.

“The battery recycling market is expected to grow significantly by 2030, with the market size forecast to exceed $20 billion due to rapid growth in global EV sales over the past few years,” SK ecoplant official said. “Global demand for EVs is expected to increase to 230 million units. We will lead the market with explosive growth potential with world-class technology and a competitive edge.”