Biden’s electric vehicle plan includes battery recycling push

President Joe Biden’s strategy to make the US a powerhouse in electric vehicles will include boosting domestic recycling of batteries to reuse lithium and other metals, according to government officials.

As Biden makes fighting climate change and competing with China centerpieces of his agenda, the administration is set to wrap up a 100-day review of gaps in supply chains in key areas, including electric vehicles (EV).

These gaps include the minerals used in EV batteries and consumer electronics. The administration is also looking for ways to reduce metal usage in new battery chemistries.

Reports from various government agencies will be submitted to the White House, a process Biden ordered in an executive order earlier this year. Parts of the reports could be released publicly as soon as next week.

Democrats are pushing aggressive climate goals to have a majority of US-manufactured cars be electric by 2030 and every car on the road to be electric by 2040.

Securing enough cobalt, lithium and other raw materials to make EV batteries is a major obstacle, with domestic mines facing extensive regulatory hurdles and environmental opposition.

Reuters reported on May 25 that Biden plans to rely on mines in ally countries to supply much of the metals needed to build EVs.

The administration’s options to spur domestic recycling include direct investment in projects and scientific research, as well as spending funds approved by Congress.

Boosting domestic recycling would help the administration further that goal by breaking down older EVs into component parts for new vehicles and thus relying less on mining.

“When you look at the way the US has approached the recycling opportunity, what’s very evident is we need to invest in that capacity, we need to take a more proactive approach,” said one of the administration officials.

“A big part of the lithium opportunity is really recycling, and being a global leader in recycling the lithium from existing batteries and driving that into these new batteries.”

The White House would like to see more recycling plants open in the US, one of the officials said, noting the announcement last fall by China’s Ganfeng Lithium Co. of plans to build a battery recycling plant in Mexico to supply the US EV market.

The administration’s emerging strategy will also include a heavy emphasis on research and development intended to boost the use of already-mined metals, the officials said.

That plan would effectively expand on ongoing research at the US Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory, which has been the focal point for much of the government’s battery recycling research.

Extracting the various mineral components of a battery has proven difficult and costly in the past, and new research focuses on ways to reuse cathodes and other battery parts, according to Argonne researchers.

Washington’s recycling focus comes as other regions are doing the same. The EU is considering clamping down on exports of metal waste to encourage more regional recycling, part of an effort to become climate neutral by 2050.

Global EV sales topped 2.5 million last year, a figure that’s projected to jump 70 percent for 2021 and continue to rise through 2040, according to IHS Markit forecasts.