PUBLISHER: AnalystView Market Insights | PRODUCT CODE: 1901501
PUBLISHER: AnalystView Market Insights | PRODUCT CODE: 1901501
Battery recycling market size was valued at US$ 25,989.34 Million in 2024, expanding at a CAGR of 13.9% from 2025 to 2032.
Battery recycling recovers valuable metals and materials (cobalt, nickel, copper, lithium) from spent batteries-automotive, industrial, and consumer-using pyrometallurgical, hydrometallurgical, and direct-recycling processes to reintroduce feedstock into battery supply chains. With EV battery demand expected to exceed 3 TWh by 2030 under current policies, end-of-life flows will rise sharply, creating large secondary-material streams. Opportunities include scaling hydrometallurgy for higher lithium and cobalt recovery, "direct-to-cell" technologies reducing refining steps, OEM-backed closed-loop programs, regional gigafactory-recycler co-location, and second-life battery repurposing for stationary storage to delay recycling.
Battery Recycling Market- Market Dynamics
Critical-mineral shortages, recycling-efficiency mandates, and soaring end-of-life battery volumes to accelerate global battery-recycling demand
Rapid electrification and surging consumption of lithium, cobalt, and nickel are intensifying global pressure to recover critical minerals from used batteries. Governments and intergovernmental agencies are tightening recycling-efficiency rules to reduce landfill waste, stabilize mineral supply chains, and lower the environmental footprint of battery production.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), clean-energy transitions could require a 40X rise in lithium demand, 20x rise in nickel, and over 20x rise in cobalt by 2040, levels impossible to meet without large-scale recycling. The EU Sustainable Batteries Regulation mandates 65% recycling efficiency for lithium-ion batteries by 2025, increasing to 70% by 2030, and requires recovery of 90% of cobalt, copper, and nickel by 2027 and 80% of lithium by 2031.
Global end-of-life battery volumes are projected to exceed 1.2 million metric tons annually by 2030 (IEA), driving multi-year investment in collection systems, hydrometallurgical processing, and black-mass refining ecosystems.
The Global Battery Recycling Market is segmented on the basis of Source, Chemistry, Material, Process, Processing State, and Region.
The market is divided into three categories based on Source: Industrial Batteries, Automotive Batteries, and Consumer & Electronic Appliance Batteries. The automotive battery segment is the one to watch, as it represents the largest inflow of end-of-life batteries-especially from electric vehicles, which are now entering the replacement cycle. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global EV stock surpassed 40 million in 2023, creating a future recycling wave dominated by lithium-ion automotive packs. Industrial batteries, particularly those used in telecom towers, UPS systems, and renewable storage, also present consistent recycling volume due to high lead-acid usage. Meanwhile, consumer and electronic appliance batteries contribute recurring but smaller streams, valuable for recovering cobalt-rich chemistries from phones, laptops, power tools, and small electronics.
The market is further segmented based on Chemistry: Lithium-based, Lead-acid, Nickel-based, Mercury, Alkaline, Zinc-air, Zinc-carbon, and Others. Among these, lead-acid batteries remain the most significant segment, driven by nearly universal recyclability and a 95-99% global recycling rate, according to the U.S. EPA. They form the backbone of current recycling operations due to mature collection networks and commercial viability. However, lithium-based batteries are the fastest-evolving and most crucial segment, as EV adoption increases demand for recovering lithium, nickel, and cobalt. IEA estimates that recycled materials could supply up to 10% of global EV battery demand by 2040, making lithium-based chemistry central to long-term circular economy goals. Nickel-based batteries maintain steady demand from industrial and specialty applications, while segments such as alkaline, zinc-air, zinc-carbon, and mercury shrink due to regulatory restrictions and reduced consumer use but still require responsible disposal and recovery systems.
Battery Recycling Market- Geographical Insights
Global battery-recycling dynamics are shaped by accelerating EV adoption, expanding gigafactory output, and tightening material-recovery regulations across major economies. Europe holds the largest share, supported by the EU Batteries Regulation, which mandates minimum recovery rates for cobalt, nickel, copper, and lithium-driving large-scale hydrometallurgical capacity build-out. The European Commission reports that the region will require over 18 times more lithium by 2030, making secondary materials essential for supply security.
Asia-Pacific is the fastest-growing region, led by China, Japan, and South Korea, where massive EV and battery-manufacturing volumes create the world's largest future feedstock. According to the IEA, China alone accounted for over 60% of global battery manufacturing capacity in 2023, positioning the region as the anchor for next-generation recycling investments.
North America benefits from IRA-driven incentives, OEM-backed closed-loop partnerships, and rapidly growing Li-ion waste volumes. Meanwhile, Latin America and the Middle East & Africa gain relevance as governments seek localized processing to support emerging raw-material supply chains and reduce export dependence.
China Battery Recycling Market- Country Insights
China dominates the global battery recycling market, supported by the world's largest EV ecosystem, strong manufacturing capacity, and strict recycling mandates. According to industry data, China generated the highest volume of EV battery retirements in 2023, driven by rapid NEV adoption and large-scale lithium-ion production. Government policies, such as mandatory traceability systems and producer-responsibility requirements, accelerate the collection and recycling of end-of-life batteries. Leading OEMs like BYD, CATL, and GAC are integrating closed-loop recycling to recover lithium, nickel, and cobalt. With expanding recycling hubs across provinces like Guangdong, Hubei, and Jiangsu, China continues to advance battery material recovery at scale, setting global cost and technology benchmarks for sustainable battery circularity.
Rising battery volumes and regulatory recycling targets are driving consolidation and vertical integration across the value chain. Key players include Umicore, Li-Cycle, Redwood Materials, Glencore, Duesenfeld (or Dowa Group), Fortum/Neometals (JVs), Retriev Technologies, and American Battery Technology Company. Companies pursue partnerships with OEMs and gigafactories, scale hydrometallurgical capacity for higher lithium yields, and integrate logistics for safe collection. Common strategies are securing feedstock via OEM take-back or dealer networks, deploying multi-step hydrometallurgy to maximize critical-metal recovery, and forming regional processing hubs near battery-manufacturing clusters to lower transport carbon and cost.
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