STC

What STC does

STC (Science Technology Consulting) is an Italian EPCM (Engineering, Procurement & Construction Management) firm headquartered in Mesagne, province of Brindisi, Italy, founded in 2001 as a spin-off of a scientific and technological park. The company designs, engineers, and supplies complete industrial plants, modular Plug&Play equipment, and process technologies primarily for spent lead-acid battery (ULAB) recycling and lead production, with a secondary focus on industrial and municipal water treatment and specialized projects in food processing, aluminum recycling, and ADBLUE production. STC's technical core rests on proprietary hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical processes protected by patents granted in Italy, the EU, and the US — most notably U4Lead (urea-based paste and grids desulphurization) and Lead3 (hydrometallurgical lead oxide regeneration without reduction furnaces) — supplemented by a portfolio of standardized modular solutions (Electrolyte Concentration/Neutralization, Heavy Plastic Treatment System, Polypropylene Upgrading Unit, Metallic Fraction Separation Unit) and ancillary equipment (OXY-AIR LANCE, Spoon Feeding System, MVR systems).

The company operates a project-based revenue model combining EPCM professional services, hardware/equipment supply, turnkey plant delivery, technology licensing (U4Lead and Lead3), and plant modernization/revamping. Customer base spans enterprise industrial recyclers, battery producers, and water-treatment operators across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, and Asia, with named reference projects in Italy, Greece, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Estonia, the USA, Brazil, Tunisia, Serbia, Romania, and Bulgaria. Go-to-market relies on direct enterprise field sales, conference participation (Pb2023, Pb2025, RECYCLE100, E-Waste World, Re-Battery, Asian Battery Conference), technical white papers, and a 2025 strategic pivot toward a modular engineering model in which STC provides engineering and process design while clients handle local fabrication and procurement.

Since 2019, STC has been majority-owned (66.66%) by Monbat Group, a vertically integrated Bulgarian lead-acid battery and lithium-ion conglomerate, providing both a captive customer pipeline and operational independence under founding CEO Giorgio La Sala. The company holds ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001 certifications audited annually by RINA, European F-GAS certification, and an Italian Ministry-qualified Research Laboratory.

Name

STC

Legal name

STC S.r.l.

Website

https://stcitaly.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

STC is an Italian EPCM firm that designs and supplies proprietary lead-acid battery recycling plants and water treatment systems for industrial clients globally. It operates modular Plug&Play solutions and patented processes (U4Lead, Lead3), and is majority-owned by Monbat Group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Mesagne

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. EPCM Services: Engineering Procurement & Construction Management services including consulting, pre-sales support, engineering & design, project management, procurement management, construction management, and after-sales support.
2. Equipment Construction and Supply: Construction and supply of industrial equipment and machinery for lead recycling and water treatment plants. Includes Plug&Play solutions and custom-built equipment.
3. Complete Plant Supply: Design and construction of turnkey plants for lead recycling, water treatment, and other industrial applications.
4. Technology Licensing: Licensing of proprietary technologies including U4Lead and Lead3 processes.
5. Plant Modernization and Revamping: Upgrading existing plants with new technologies like MVR systems and U4Lead retrofit solutions.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

STC is an Italian EPCM company that designs, engineers, procures, and manages the construction of industrial plants and equipment for spent lead-acid battery recycling, water and wastewater treatment, and specialized sectors including food processing and aluminum recycling. It delivers both complete turnkey plants and standardized Plug&Play modular units, complemented by consulting, R&D, and after-sales services, underpinned by proprietary processes such as U4Lead desulphurization and Lead3 hydrometallurgical lead oxide regeneration.

Product overview

STC (Science Technology Consulting) is an Italian EPCM company offering industrial plants, equipment, and services for lead battery recycling, water treatment, and specialized sectors. The product portfolio centers on three core areas: (1) Lead Recycling Plants covering the complete chain from battery breaking/separation through smelting and refining, featuring proprietary technologies like U4LEAD desulphurization (using urea) and LEAD³ hydrometallurgical lead oxide regeneration; (2) Modular Plug&Play Solutions including Electrolyte Concentration/Neutralization, Heavy Plastic Treatment System, Polypropylene Upgrading Unit, and Metallic Fraction Separation; (3) Water Treatment systems with comprehensive equipment portfolio and custom plants. Equipment offerings include OXY-AIR LANCE for lead refining and Spoon Feeding Systems. Services span full EPCM lifecycle from consulting through after-sales support, with strong R&D focus protected by international patents.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Lead Recycling Plants & Equipment Complete plants, equipment, and Plug&Play solutions for the recycling of exhausted lead-acid batteries and lead production, covering the full chain from Battery Breaking & Separation through Smelting and Refining for industrial lead recycling operators.
• U4Lead Paste and Grids Desulphurization Patented desulphurization process using amine compounds (urea) to treat lead paste and grids from spent batteries, reducing SO2 emissions during smelting and improving lead recovery efficiency.
• Lead3 Lead Oxide Regeneration Hydrometallurgical process for regeneration of lead oxide from exhausted lead-acid batteries without the use of reduction furnaces, producing nanostructured oxides claimed to give batteries greater capacity and longer life.
• STC Mini-Smelter Modular and standardized plant that integrates all stages of spent lead-acid battery recycling from battery breaking through smelting and refining, processing up to 15,000 tons of batteries per year and yielding approximately 8,000 tons of refined lead ingots.
• Electrolyte Concentration System Heat Pump Vacuum Evaporator system for filtration and concentration of spent electrolyte up to 45% H2SO4, producing clean condensate for reuse. Module capacity ranges from 1 to 24 m³/day with energy consumption of about 125 kWh per m³ of distilled water.
• Electrolyte Neutralization System Compact, modular neutralization unit using double-stage neutralization with milk of lime, followed by flocculation, coagulation, lamella settling, and sludge filtration for spent battery electrolyte.
• Heavy Plastic Treatment System (HPTS) Treats heavy plastic fraction from battery breaking plants to produce clean PE separator pellets for fuel reuse, recover lead paste and metallic lead, and recover rigid plastics such as PP and ABS. Available in 200, 400, and 800 kg/h capacities.
• Polypropylene Upgrading Unit Produces clean PP granules meeting UNI 10667 standards through washing, grinding, and extrusion processes, with output used for new battery boxes and various plastic products.
• Metallic Fraction Separation Unit Treats metallic components from battery recycling to classify the metallic fraction into fines, metallic grids, and poles/connectors. Includes options for heavy plastics removal and desulphurization using caustic soda or urea to reduce environmental and economic impact of grid smelting.
• OXY-AIR LANCE Submerged lance system for lead refining that injects a balanced mix of oxygen and compressed air to selectively oxidize and remove antimony, arsenic, and/or tin from molten lead in refining kettles. Features a local control panel.
• Spoon Feeding System Material handling system for smelting rotary furnaces comprising 6 spoons of approximately 2.5-ton capacity each, a supporting structure, and a KAUP rotating device for forklift transfer to the furnace area.
• MVR System (Mechanical Vapour Recompression) Mechanical Vapour Recompression system that produces heat for evaporation of sodium sulphate solution through adiabatic recompression of evaporated steam, reducing natural gas consumption by approximately 1,500,000 m³ per year and CO2 emissions by approximately 2,700 tons per year.
• Water Treatment Plants & Equipment Tailor-made solutions for design and construction of water and wastewater treatment systems, including industrial process water, drinking water, municipal wastewater, environmental remediation, water reuse and recycle (zero liquid discharge), and grey water treatment.
• Water Treatment Equipment Portfolio Full range of standalone water treatment equipment including pressure filters, softeners and demi plants, filterpress, chemical scrubbers, clarifiers and thickeners, sequencing batch reactors, chemicals dosing units, thermal dryers, and dissolved air flotation systems.
• Special Projects (Food Processing, Aluminum Recycling, ADBLUE) Innovative technologies in specialized sectors including food processing R&D (low temperature dehydration, fresh pasta pasteurization, microwave pasteurization, high hydrostatic pressure stabilization, osmotic dehydration, membrane separation), aluminum recycling plants (scrap pretreatment, melting furnaces, burners, ingot casting lines, fumes treatment), and urea dissolving plants for ADBLUE production.
• Engineering & Consulting (EPCM) Services Full EPCM (Engineering, Procurement & Construction Management) services covering consulting, pre-sales support, engineering & design, project management, procurement management, equipment construction, construction management, and after-sales support and spare parts management for industrial plant clients.
• Research & Development Services R&D services for process innovation in chemistry, biochemistry, process, automation, mechanical engineering, and related fields, working with specialized machine companies and public/private research centers. Outcomes protected through national and international patents.

Quantifiable outcome

• Mini-Smelter processes 15,000 tons batteries/year yielding 8,000 tons refined lead ingots
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Pioneiro EcometaiscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025STC is working on desulphurization and crystallization project at Pioneiro's lead acid battery recycling plant in Água Doce – Brazil. Pioneiro Industrial is one of the leading companies in South America for lead acid batteries production and production of lead alloys from recycling of exhausted batteries. Project represents a new cooperation between companies.
• Ecometal AScoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2024STC won international tender to supply Mechanical Vapour Recompression System for Ecometal AS (Estonian ULAB recycling company). STC scope includes revamping of existing crystallizer for sodium sulphate crystallization with MVR technology, reducing gas consumption by 1,500,000 m3/year and CO2 emissions by 2,700 tons/year.
• ACE Green RecyclingcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2023STC signed MOU with ACE Green Recycling for battery recycling equipment supply. Through this strategic collaboration, STC constructs battery recycling facilities providing manufacturing of recycling equipment and overall engineering and project management activities, integrating STC's proprietary technologies with ACE's zero Scope 1 emissions technologies for lead and lithium-ion batteries. Both companies will explore opportunities for licensing and co-marketing their battery recycling technologies.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Sipi Metals Group: Italian family-owned group active in secondary lead production and non-ferrous metals recycling. Operates in the same lead-recycling vertical STC serves on the EPCM side, with comparable European customer base and overlapping project geographies (especially Italy and Balkans).
• Aqua Engineering GmbH: Austrian/German EPCM specialist focused on industrial water and wastewater treatment plants, including ZLD and brine management. Directly comparable to STC's water treatment EPCM business for industrial clients in Europe, with similar scale and custom-engineering orientation.
• Engitec Technologies: Italian-headquartered engineering firm supplying complete battery recycling plants and equipment (breaking, separation, smelting, refining). Direct head-to-head peer with STC in the ULAB plant EPCM market, sharing Italian roots, similar customer base of secondary lead producers, and overlapping modular plant offerings.
• Recylex SA: French lead recycling group operating secondary lead smelters across Europe with integrated battery breaking and refining. Operates on the operator side of the same value chain STC serves, comparable in end-market exposure and geographic footprint, and a potential repeat EPCM customer for STC's U4Lead technology.

Broad incumbents

• BHS Sonthofen GmbH: German industrial equipment supplier with established filter press and recycling technology lines serving battery recycling, metals, and minerals markets. Comparable as a larger, broader-incumbent equipment supplier that competes for similar lead-recycling equipment budgets though across many additional verticals beyond lead.
• Thermax Limited: Indian-headquartered EPCM and process equipment company with a substantial industrial water and wastewater treatment business serving boilers, cooling, ZLD, and effluent treatment. Comparable to STC's water treatment EPCM arm in offering custom industrial wastewater and ZLD plants, though across a much broader industrial portfolio.
• Veolia Water Technologies: Global water and wastewater EPCM division of Veolia, supplying industrial process water, effluent treatment, and zero liquid discharge systems worldwide. Overlaps directly with STC's water treatment EPCM offering for industrial and municipal clients, with much greater scale and global footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCwg4x2CdARCmArDvb0xk7iA
• Facebookfacebook.com/stcitaly
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stcitaly

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about STC