Used EV batteries spur big business opportunities

The automotive industry is exploring various approaches to handling electric vehicle (EV) batteries after they have reached the end of their life in the vehicle. While end-of-life battery volumes are miniscule today, numbers will skyrocket in the coming decades as the EV parc grows. Players are scrambling to develop the appropriate technology and business models to evaluate a battery’s remaining life, put it into new applications, and recycle its valuable materials.

Where to draw the line?

But at what stage is a battery considered ready to be retired from an EV? There’s no industry consensus on this at the moment, and numerous variables are at work. “There will never be a true answer to this because every OEM will treat it differently,” predicts Helen Waters, Head of Electric Battery Recycling at sustainable materials expert European Metal Recycling (EMR).