Global Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Market - 2023-2030

Market Overview

The Global Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Market reached US$ 6.1 billion in 2022 and is expected to reach US$ 20.4 billion by 2030, growing with a CAGR of 22.3% during the forecast period 2023-2030. Lithium-ion batteries have become popular in portable electronics, electric vehicles, and military and aerospace applications. The advancement of battery technology, coupled with reduced maintenance requirements, has fueled the growth of electric vehicles.

However, with the increasing usage of lithium-ion batteries in consumer products, recycling is needed to prevent potential hazards, such as explosions and improper disposal. The demand for lithium-ion battery recycling is driven by several factors, including investments in electric vehicle development and incentives to promote battery recycling. The recycling process becomes crucial to mitigate the risks associated with the disposal of these batteries.

North America is experiencing significant growth in the global lithium-ion battery recycling market, accounting for more than one-fifth of the market share. The growth can be attributed to substantial government investments and the region's collaborative research and development efforts. Among the various technology segments, the hydrometallurgy process is witnessing rapid growth. The respective segment is close to capturing approximately one-third of the market share in the technology segment. Hydrometallurgy is favored due to its enhanced safety measures and high recovery rate.

Market Dynamics

Technological Advancements and Increasing Number of New Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Units

Since its introduction in the 1990s, the cost of lithium-ion batteries has been a major barrier to adoption. Many components of a state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery are given at subsidized prices. However, recent discoveries and claims made by lithium-ion battery manufacturers and automotive manufacturers predict that the prices of these batteries will drop significantly, creating opportunities for key players to grow in the future. Pricing is falling due to large-scale manufacturing, decreasing component prices and battery capacity technologies.

The falling prices of lithium batteries are predicted to fuel the expansion of the renewable energy storage sector, with lithium-ion batteries expected to outperform all other rechargeable batteries. The respective fact, in turn, is likely to raise the demand for used lithium-ion batteries to be recycled. For instance, on July 23, 2021, India constructed its largest 3 GWh Li-ion battery manufacturing and recycling factory. The respective factory integrates battery manufacturing capacity of 1 GWh/ 1,000 MWh and 2GWh/ 2,000 MWh of recycling per annum.

Increasing Adoption and Investment

The sales of electric vehicles (EVs) have been experiencing significant growth in recent years. The increasing demand for EVs can be attributed to several factors, including environmental consciousness, government incentives, and technological advancements. EV sales increased by 40% in 2021. Furthermore, China topped the lithium-ion batteries for the electric vehicle market and the country accounts for around 40% of the global sale of the electric vehicle. Thus, these rising numbers of end-users and Li-ion battery manufacturing are triggering the global recycling plants' market.

Additionally, various companies are trying to bring a new approach to drop down the process cost of a recycling plant and combat environmental pollution. In addition EV key players are also contributing to improving EVs lithium-ion batteries recycling. For instance, on January 26, 2021, Fortum has announced the development of its battery recycling activities in line with the announcement of Finland's national battery policy. Fortum plans to open a new mechanical recycling processing plant in Ikaalinen, Finland, in February 2021.

High Investment Cost

Lithium-ion battery facility setup requires high investment in technology collection, transportation and management of resources. Country like India is still in the initial phase as the recyclers struggle even in the B2B segment. However, B2C would remain a distant reality for the next few years. Thus the cost of recycling in India remained a major hindrance factor for the growth of the Lithium-ion battery recycling market.

However, in India, lithium-ion battery recycling costs around US$ 1.20 -1.33 per Kg (Rs. 90-100 per Kg). Furthermore, As per the 2020 press release, The value of end-of-use automotive packs is US$ 4.0 per Kg (£3.3 per Kg) for battery electric vehicles and US$ 2.6 per Kg (£2.2 per Kg) for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. But UK-based OEMs are paying US$ 3.6- 9.8 per Kg (£3-8 per Kg) in recycling charges for Li-ion batteries that are exported for processing, with recovered materials having to be repurchased before they can be reused. Therfore, the profile margins are extreme shown compared to the investment.

COVID-19 Impact Analysis

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a long-term impact on the energy sector and other areas of life. During the COVID-19 crisis, maintaining the continuity of power supply to various industry needs and serving the needs of consumers was a major issue for power and utility providers.

The need for fewer workers in this sector has been imposed by safety and distance standards and the need for strict hygiene directly impacts field workers and operations. The reduced demand has created technical issues, with system engineers attempting to reach supply voltage and reactive levels to avoid the risk of reactive shutdowns at distribution levels.

Furthermore, other sectors, such as marine industries, have also faced market share reduction due to the COVID-19 outbreak, which hampers the lithium-ion recycling market. Additionally, the impact on the power sector due to COVID-19 has also hampered lithium-ion battery recycling as it is one of the major end-users for the market.

However, most countries are regaining their production units and increasing vaccination in countries like India, the U.S., China and other developing countries have escalated the demand for products involving lithium batteries. The reopening of production units and reopening of cross-border trading has reduced supply chain disruption problems leading to regaining the market momentum in recent times and expected to achieve the expected market potential for the product in the forecast period.

Segment Analysis

The Global Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Market is segmented based on battery chemistry, technology, end-user and region.

High Energy Density and Availability in Various Configurations

Because of the substantial price drop in recent years, since 2015, there has been an upsurge in the use of NMC batteries in the automotive sector. NMC batteries will be used in mass-produced electric vehicles, according to major global automakers. Tesla, for example, employs CATL's LiNi0.6Mn0.2Co0.2O2 (NMC622) batteries in China (Shirouzu och Lienert 2020). NMC batteries (LiNi1/3Mn1/3Co1/3O2 (NMC111), LiNi0.6Mn0.2Co0.2O2 (NMC622), LiNi0.8Mn0.1Co0.1O2 (NMC811)) are purchased by both Tesla and Audi from LG Chem (Shirouzu och Lienert 2020). (LG Chem 2020).

NMC batteries have a high energy density and are available in various configurations, including NMC111 (equal amounts nickel, manganese and cobalt) and NMC532/622. The Chevrolet Bolt and Nissan Leaf are two electric vehicles that employ these batteries. The Lithium-Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) segment in the Global Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Market was valued at US$ 4.4 billion in 2022.

Due to its widespread use in applications such as e-bikes and other electric powertrains, the lithium nickel manganese cobalt category is expected to hold a healthy proportion of the market. NMC batteries, due to their high Cobalt content, are intriguing to recycle. The presence of an established end-of-life battery collecting network is another element driving the segment's growth.

Geographical Analysis

Rapidly Escalating Sales of Electric Vehicles and Energy Storage System for Residential and Commercial Applications

The Asia-Pacific Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Market was valued at US$ 2.6 billion in 2022. The sales for electric vehicles are rapidly escalating in Asian countries such as Japan, China and South Korea. With the increased market of electric vehicles in Asian economies, lithium-ion batteries will expand simultaneously, improving lithium-ion battery recycling.

For instance, To limit the amount of EV battery waste, an Indian EV manufacturer, eBikeGo, has launched a recycling campaign for their lithium batteries in 2021. The company will take the battery for recycling when the capacity of an electric vehicle's battery drops by around 25%. Recycling Li-ion batteries will help to bring down the pricing of the batteries in the future.

Similarly, the energy storage system for residential and commercial applications further drives the market in the region. Also, China topped the lithium-ion batteries for the electric vehicle market and the country accounts for around 40% of the global sale of electric vehicles.

Thus, these rising numbers of end-users and manufacturing of Li-ion batteries in the region are triggering the recycling plants' market in the region. Government authorities in the region are also promoting the production of electric vehicles and lithium-ion batteries, which is expected to surge the market demand.

Competitive Landscape

The major global players include: Glencore, Raw Materials Company, Umicore, Neometals Ltd, American Manganese Inc., Retriev Technologies, Li-Cycle Corp, SNAM (A subsidiary of Floridienne Group), TES and Duesenfeld GmbH.

Why Purchase the Report?

• To visualize the Global Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Market segmentation based on battery chemistry, technology, end-user and region, as well as understand key commercial assets and players.
• Identify commercial opportunities by analyzing trends and co-development.
• Excel data sheet with numerous lithium-ion battery recycling market-level data points with all segments.
• PDF report consists of a comprehensive analysis after exhaustive qualitative interviews and an in-depth study.
• Product mapping available as Excel consisting of key products of all the major players.

The Global Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Market Report Would Provide Approximately 61 Tables, 62 Figures And 205 Pages.

Target Audience 2023

• Manufacturers/ Buyers
• Industry Investors/Investment Bankers
• Research Professionals
• Emerging Companies