In Japan 4R Energy Corporation, a Nissan and Sumitomo Corp JV, will reassemble a few hundred battery modules annually from the first-generation Nissan Leaf, where the used pack’s overall energy capacity has fallen below 80%. The economics of remanufacturing are yet to be established but there are some clues when it comes to re-use. Mercedes-Benz is building a $91m remanufacturing plant in Shanghai with a focus that will include EVs, while leading Chinese EV maker BYD has announced plans to open an EV recycling centre.
There is some evidence of activity in this regard. The company’s long-professed aim to create a ‘closed loop’ battery process - together with China’s recent legislation mandating EV battery recycling or reuse by August 2018 - suggest it is just a matter of time before a big market in EV battery remanufacturing, reuse and recycling takes off. Perhaps the best-known – and, in terms of media coverage, certainly the most colourful - name in this nascent industry is Tesla. There could be 11 million tonnes of used EV batteries by 2030, according to an estimate from Canadian battery recycling startup Li-Cycle. In theory, EVs could offer significant scope for reman since they can be designed from the ground up with modern circular economy objectives in mind.Īnd it is batteries, representing up to 40% of the value of an EV, that will offer much of the potential for reman.
#MERCEDES BATTERIES NOT INCLUDED FULL#
In China, meanwhile, the electro-mobility revolution is in full swing with hundreds of thousands of electric cars, trucks and buses now rolling off production lines annually.Īs the global EV vehicle parc grows (it is set to reach 2.6 million in 2020, according to Navigant Research) so should the remanufacturing opportunities. In the US, production of Tesla’s model 3 - set to be the world’s first ‘affordable’ mass-market, long-range EV - looks to be hitting its stride after initial teething problems. Slow off the starting line, the global electric vehicle (EV) sector is now starting to accelerate into the mass market. But, as Andrew Stone finds, remanufacturing batteries may not be that easy. With sales of electric vehicles gathering pace, the automotive reman sector is checking out new opportunities.
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