Where do retired batteries go? The recycling industry is just getting started.
Driven by both energy conservation and environmental protection considerations, my country advocates the development of new energy vehicles. However, if the recycling and reuse of power batteries are not properly managed, it could lead to serious environmental pollution and resource waste.
On August 1, with the official implementation of the "Interim Measures for the Management of Recycling and Utilization of Power Batteries for New Energy Vehicles" and the "Interim Provisions for the Traceability Management of Recycling and Utilization of Power Batteries for New Energy Vehicles", my country began to implement full life-cycle traceability management for every power battery, and built a control system for power battery products that ensures "traceable source, traceable destination, controllable nodes, and accountability".
With the system in place, what is the current market situation for power battery recycling? Who is qualified to recycle power batteries? What problems exist in the recycling process? To address these hot issues of general concern in the industry, a reporter from China Automotive News interviewed the research team on power battery recycling management policies at the Data Resource Center of China Automotive Technology and Research Center Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as CATARC).
In recent years, the China Automotive Technology and Research Center (CATARC), commissioned by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), has conducted a series of top-level designs for the management system of power battery recycling, supporting government departments in formulating and issuing relevant management regulations for power batteries. CATARC has also collaborated with Beijing Institute of Technology to build the "National Monitoring and Power Battery Recycling Traceability Integrated Management Platform for New Energy Vehicles," enabling tracking and control of power batteries throughout their entire lifecycle. Furthermore, research on standards in the field of power battery recycling is progressing steadily.
Currently, the number of retired power batteries is relatively small.
Regarding the current state of my country's power battery recycling industry, Chen Ping, deputy director of the Data Resource Center of the China Automotive Technology and Research Center, said:
Currently, the number of retired power batteries in my country is still relatively small, and the recycling industry is in its early stages of development. The majority of batteries initially installed in my country's new energy vehicles were lithium iron phosphate batteries, followed by ternary lithium batteries.
Currently, most retired batteries on the market are lithium iron phosphate batteries. However, lithium iron phosphate batteries contain relatively few precious metals, thus their recycling value is low. Nevertheless, due to their high safety and long lifespan, they are more suitable for secondary use.
• Ternary batteries contain rare metals such as nickel and cobalt, which are scarce in my country, and have high recycling value.
my country launched the "Ten Cities, Thousand Vehicles" project in 2009 to promote new energy vehicles, and 17,000 new energy vehicles were promoted between 2009 and 2012. After 2013, new energy vehicles entered a stage of large-scale promotion and application. As of June 2018, the cumulative production had reached 2.2 million vehicles, accounting for nearly 50% of the world's total production, making my country the world's largest producer and seller of new energy vehicles. As a core component of new energy vehicles, the demand for power batteries has also been increasing year by year, with a cumulative installed capacity exceeding 103 GWh as of June 2018.
According to comprehensive calculations by relevant experts based on factors such as enterprise warranty period, battery cycle life, and vehicle operating conditions, these batteries will enter large-scale retirement in 2020, with a cumulative total of more than 200,000 tons (24.6 GWh) of retired batteries. If we assume that 70% can be used for secondary utilization, approximately 60,000 tons of batteries will need to be scrapped.
Recycling enterprises are developing rapidly, while secondary utilization is still in the exploratory stage.
Typically, the remaining capacity of the power batteries in new energy vehicles decreases to 70%-80% of their initial capacity, at which point they can no longer meet the vehicle's usage requirements and must be "retired." The recycling of retired power batteries includes two stages: secondary use and resource recovery. Secondary use of power batteries is widely favored in the energy storage field. Batteries with secondary use value can be used for energy storage, backup power, and other fields; those without secondary use value can be recycled to extract valuable metals, maximizing the comprehensive utilization benefits of resources.
From an industry development perspective, Chen Ping believes that recycling companies are developing rapidly. A number of leading companies, such as GEM Co., Ltd., BNP Paribas, Huayou Cobalt, Guangdong Guanghua, and Ganzhou Haopeng, have developed relatively mature technologies for recycling used power batteries and have achieved large-scale recycling capabilities. Meanwhile, cascade utilization, as an emerging concept, is still in the exploratory stage. Currently, China Tower Corporation has carried out large-scale practical applications in the field of backup power for communication base stations, and some companies such as State Grid and BYD have also carried out some pilot projects in areas such as energy storage.
Who will be responsible for the recycling and reuse of power batteries?
In February of this year, seven ministries, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, jointly issued the "Interim Measures for the Management of Recycling and Utilization of Power Batteries for New Energy Vehicles." The measures clarify that the principle of power battery recycling and utilization management is the extended producer responsibility system, which means that automobile manufacturers bear the primary responsibility for power battery recycling, while other relevant enterprises, new energy vehicle manufacturers, and power battery users fulfill their corresponding responsibilities in the process of power battery recycling and utilization to ensure the effective utilization and environmentally friendly disposal of power batteries.
Wang Pan, project manager of the Recycling and Utilization Department of the Data Resource Center, said:
Automobile manufacturers should establish and publicize power battery recycling service outlets, improve recycling channels through various means, and fulfill their responsibilities regarding the release of information related to power battery recycling and utilization. End-of-life vehicle dismantling companies should, in accordance with relevant requirements, standardize the dismantling of new energy vehicles and hand over the dismantled batteries to recycling service outlets or qualified comprehensive utilization companies. Second-hand utilization companies, as producers of second-hand utilization products, must trace the origin of their products and bear the responsibility for recycling the waste power batteries they generate; recycling should ensure the efficient recycling and harmless disposal of ultimately scrapped batteries.
The fate of retired batteries can only be answered by solving these 7 questions...
The "Interim Measures for the Management of Recycling and Utilization of Power Batteries for New Energy Vehicles" and the "Interim Provisions for the Traceability Management of Recycling and Utilization of Power Batteries for New Energy Vehicles" officially came into effect on August 1st of this year. Regarding hot issues of widespread concern in the industry, a reporter from China Automotive News interviewed the power battery recycling and utilization management policy research team at the Data Resource Center of China Automotive Technology and Research Center Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as CATARC). In the previous issue, we learned about the current status of my country's power battery recycling and utilization industry; today, we'll discuss what new problems still need to be addressed.
There are significant differences in the recycling and dismantling of traditional cars and new energy vehicles.
The "heart" of new energy vehicles differs from that of traditional engines. The recycling and reuse of power batteries is a "new challenge." Hastily dismantling retired batteries could lead to serious safety accidents. Furthermore, improper handling during recycling, dismantling, and processing could result in fires, explosions, electrolyte leaks, and the emission of organic waste gases.
So, what qualifications are required to recycle and dismantle power batteries for new energy vehicles? Can companies that recycle and dismantle traditional end-of-life vehicles dismantle electric vehicles?
Li Longhui, director of the Recycling and Utilization Department of the Data Resource Center, stated that end-of-life vehicle recycling and dismantling companies should meet the relevant requirements of the "Technical Specifications for End-of-Life Vehicle Recycling and Dismantling Companies" (GB22128) and the "Regulations on the Management of End-of-Life Vehicle Recycling" (State Council Decree No. 307). If revisions, replacements, or new drafts of standards and policies are involved, the latest released policies and standards should be met. To adapt to the development needs of new energy vehicles, relevant departments are currently revising the "Technical Specifications for End-of-Life Vehicle Recycling and Dismantling Companies" and the "Regulations on the Management of End-of-Life Vehicle Recycling," and are further studying relevant standards such as the technical requirements for dismantling end-of-life electric vehicles, further clarifying the entry and operational requirements for new energy vehicle recycling and dismantling companies.
In addition, enterprises engaged in the comprehensive utilization of power batteries should meet the requirements of the "Industry Standard Conditions for Comprehensive Utilization of Waste Power Batteries for New Energy Vehicles".
"The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will strengthen supervision of companies engaged in the comprehensive utilization of batteries by publishing a list of such companies. In the future, it will also implement standardized management such as certification for battery products that utilize batteries in a cascade manner."
Li Longhui added.
There are three existing problems with the recycling and reuse of power batteries.
Regarding the current problems in the recycling and utilization of power batteries, Chen Ping, deputy director of the Data Resource Center of China Automotive Technology and Research Center, believes there are three:
First, there is a lack of industry reserves of technologies for the rapid sorting and recombination, performance evaluation, and residual value assessment of retired power batteries, and these technologies also lack standardized support.
Secondly, the storage, transportation, and dismantling costs of retired power batteries are currently high, and economies of scale have not yet been achieved. Without incentive policies and a mature market mechanism, the economic viability of power battery recycling is still low.
Third, enterprises in new energy vehicles, power batteries, and comprehensive utilization have not yet formed an effective cooperation mechanism. The degree of resource sharing in the industrial chain, such as the construction of recycling service outlets, is not high, and the construction of recycling channels is relatively slow.
Future directions for power battery management
Currently, my country has basically completed the establishment of a management framework for the recycling and utilization of power batteries, achieving phased results. Recently, my country has also launched pilot demonstrations for the recycling and utilization of power batteries for new energy vehicles, supporting qualified regions and enterprises to conduct pilot projects and demonstrations in key areas of tiered utilization. Through these pilot demonstrations, problems are identified, and solutions are sought. A number of benchmark enterprises for power battery recycling and utilization are being cultivated, and diversified recycling and utilization models that are technologically and economically sound and environmentally friendly are being explored. For example, China Tower Corporation has conducted tiered utilization trials of power batteries, and has currently built more than 3,000 test base stations in 12 provinces and cities, achieving good results.
Regarding the future direction of my country's management of power battery recycling, Chen Ping believes it mainly includes several points:
1. Improve supporting policies and measures
Government authorities will further study incentive policies and measures for the recycling and utilization of power batteries to effectively promote the solution of the problem of recycling and utilizing power batteries for new energy vehicles; establish a traceability information comparison and verification mechanism; and issue regulations on the identification and standardized management of cascade utilization products to regulate the market for the cascade utilization of retired batteries; encourage social capital investment or the establishment of industry funds to explore market-oriented models such as the trading of residual value of power batteries.
2. Carry out pilot work in a solid manner
Relevant departments in pilot areas should strengthen overall coordination and carry out centralized recycling and standardized comprehensive utilization of used power batteries.
3. Strengthen technological research and development and the construction of a standards system.
We will guide automobile manufacturers, battery manufacturers, and comprehensive utilization enterprises to deepen cooperation, promote collaboration between industry, academia, and research institutions, and strengthen the research and development of common technologies and equipment for efficient dismantling, residual value assessment, cascade utilization, and efficient extraction of valuable metals from power batteries. At the same time, we will accelerate the research and establishment of standards related to the recycling and utilization of power batteries, guiding the industry to accelerate technological upgrading.
4. Increase publicity and guidance
Strengthen the dissemination of policies and regulations to all relevant stakeholders involved in the recycling and utilization of power batteries, and promote corporate social responsibility. Give full play to the role of the media, create a favorable public opinion environment, actively guide public participation in the recycling and utilization of power batteries for new energy vehicles, and standardize the transfer of power batteries.
