ASCI Connect

Battery recycling is expected to accelerate in the next 15 years, and one of the keys to profitability is a strong supply chain:

https://www.scmr.com/article/logistics-key-to-supercharging-ev-battery-recycling?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=twisc&oly_enc_id=9685J1238356E8T

An extract:

"Recycling the battery packs that power electric vehicles will help boost the market for EVs, improve the industry's environmental footprint, and grow this multi-billion dollar industry. But first, the industry must overcome two major challenges: increasing unit volumes and developing an efficient reverse supply chain for used batteries.

Materials such as cobalt, copper, lithium, and nickel reclaimed from end-of-life EV batteries can be reused again and again because the recycling process does not degrade them, said J.B. Straubel, CEO of Carson City, NV-based EV battery recycler Redwood Materials Inc. He was a panelist at the Climate Week NYC conference, in New York City, on Sept. 25, 2024. The EV battery circular supply chain could ultimately provide much of the material needed to make new units, reducing the need for virgin materials, said Straubel. That means less reliance on costly, environmentally damaging mining operations.

Redwood has a campus just outside Reno, Nevada, and is constructing a second facility in Charleston, North Carolina. In September, it announced a partnership with BMW North America to recycle lithium-ion batteries from EVs made by the BMW Group comprising over 700 locations, including dealerships, distribution centers, and internal facilities.

The industry also benefits from government support. Recycled battery materials qualify for tax credits under the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act 2022. In September, recycler Ascend Elementsannounced it is receiving a $125 million cost-sharing grant from the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains. The grant is part of a $3 billion federal investment in 25 selected projects across 14 states to boost domestic production of advanced batteries and battery materials nationwide.

An analysis of the EV battery recycling market from consulting firm McKinsey concluded that profitability is in sight. Revenues are expected to grow to more than $95 billion a year by 2040 globally."