Battery Recycling

All those people who want you to believe mining for EV batteries is as dirty as drilling for oil? They don’t want you to know about recycling – and they really don’t want you to know about a new pilot recycling program is promising a radical leap in battery recycling efficiency, with recovery reportedly rates exceeding 99% for critical metals like nickel, cobalt, and manganese.

Redwood Materials, founded by former Tesla CTO and cofounder JB Straubel, has raised $350 million in new funding to scale its US-made battery storage systems and critical materials operations. The company is ramping up to meet surging demand from AI data centers and the clean energy sector.

Originally announced two years ago, a joint energy storage project between European energy firm Enel and Nissan has come online, giving LEAF batteries a second chance at life and ensuring electrical supply for more than 90,000 people.

Porsche is launching a new EV battery recycling pilot to recover valuable raw materials from its cars’ high-voltage battery packs at the end of their useful life in vehicles. The new pilot hopes to develop a “closed-loop” raw material cycle that would have new batteries made from old batteries without the need for new, high carbon cost mineral mining.

The global shift to electric vehicles (EVs) is accelerating, but McKinsey’s latest report warns of significant strain on the supply chain for critical battery materials by 2030.

Toyota just got a $4.5 million boost from the US Department of Energy (DOE) to make EV batteries more sustainable.

Cyclic Materials, a cleantech company focused on metals recycling, has struck a multi-year deal with Swiss mining giant Glencore to supply recycled copper.

The collaboration is a step forward in making copper production more sustainable and meeting the skyrocketing demand for materials essential to clean energy technologies.

Mercedes-Benz just opened Europe’s first battery recycling plant using an innovative process that the automaker says enables recycling rate to more than 96%, all in-house and ready to be used in future Mercedes EVs.

A Canadian company called Cyclic Materials is working to create a circular supply chain for rare earth elements (REEs) using advanced recycling processes. The company just secured $53 million via a Series B equity round to accelerate its global expansion and recycling infrastructure.

Battery recycling specialist Redwood Materials has just gained another major automaker as a client, signing a partnership with BMW of North America. Redwood will help recover and recycle end of life lithium-ion cells and their rare materials from BMW Group marques like MINI and Rolls-Royce.

Advanced material extraction technology company International Battery Metals hit a significant milestone today, beginning lithium extraction operations at a new facility in the US. The plant, home to the company’s proprietary Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE), is the first in North America and will produce the first lithium derived from DLE operations worldwide.

Green Li-ion has launched a commercial-scale plant to process unsorted battery waste, or “black mass,” from used lithium-ion batteries.

MIT spinout and battery maker 24M Technologies today debuted a new direct-material battery recycling process for EV batteries and battery storage.

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland are investigating a way to recover the metallic content of EV batteries with bioengineered bacteria. The new method involves processing spent Nissan Leaf batteries into a “leachate” — a liquified battery slurry — and combining that slurry with said microbes.

Stellantis announced it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with hydrometallurgical metal recovery expert Orano, to establish a joint venture focused on recycling end-of-life EV batteries and production waste materials from its plants around the world.

Less than two years after sharing expansion plans for Europe, US-based battery recycling specialist Redwood Materials is adding Germany to its map of locations. Today, the company announced the acquisition of Redux Recycling GmbH – the leading lithium ion battery recycler in the EU, as it looks to quickly expand its operations overseas.

Volvo Energy and UK battery storage company Connected Energy today announced that they’ve signed a letter of intent to turn used Volvo EV batteries into new battery storage.

Four companies will together produce new lithium-ion EV batteries that contain recycled metals in a US first.

Li-Cycle today launched one of Europe’s largest lithium-ion battery recycling centers, and it can process full EV battery packs.

CATL, the world’s largest battery manufacturer, looks to continue its dominance in its given market by expanding its existing battery recycling program to new continents outside of China. The company is in talks with a specific partner to erect multiple battery recycling facilities across Europe and may soon be doing the same in North America.

Solid-state battery developer Factorial Energy has announced a new partnership with South Korean metal refining company, Young Poong, to research and implement lithium-metal recycling into its production practices. Through the investment, Factorial hopes to reuse excess metal materials to create a more circular economy.