Battery recycler Ascend Elements files for bankruptcy | TechCrunch

Last day to exhibit your breakthrough to 10,000+ tech leaders at Disrupt is on Oct 2. Book Exhibit Table Now. Disrupt doors open Oct. 13. Get your pass and bring someone with you at 50% off. REGISTER NOW. Ascend Elements said on Friday it has started Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in the U.S., a heavy blow to investors who had sunk nearly $900 million into the company. Linh Austin, Ascend’s CEO, announced the decision in a post on LinkedIn late Thursday night. He said the company faced “insurmountable” financial challenges. Ascend’s filing comes amid a softening market for electric vehicles in the U.S. and was likely compounded by the Trump administration’s decision to cancel a $316 million grant intended for a Kentucky facility that was under construction. At the time, $204 million was disbursed, but Ascend had to look for additional capital to make up the shortfall. The market for EVs in the U.S. has hit a rough patch recently. Though sales surged prior to the end of tax credits in September last year, they haven’t quite recovered. Analysts predicted that customers who might have bought this year pulled their purchases forward to take advantage of the credit, but it didn’t hel