As demand for lithium-ion batteries rises due to the worldwide move to electric vehicles, Indian battery recycling business Attero Recycling Pvt plans to invest $1 billion over the next five years to establish lithium-ion battery recycling factories in Europe, the United States, and Indonesia.
“There’s a tremendous amount of lithium-ion battery waste available for us to recycle,” Attero Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder Nitin Gupta said in an interview.
By 2030, 2.5 million tons of lithium-ion batteries will reach the end of their life, while currently there’s only the capacity for 0.7 million tons of battery waste to be recycled.
“Lithium-ion batteries are becoming ubiquitous because they’re used in consumer electronics and electric vehicles,” he said.
Recycling spent batteries will be crucial for the supply of lithium, whose shortage is threatening the global switch to clean energy through electric vehicles.