Infographic: How much of the battery recycling industry does China control?
As the largest producer and user of lithium ion batteries, China dominates the global battery supply chain, including theemerging industry of recycling.
How are batteries recycled?
The first stage of the battery recycling process is the collection of scrap from battery production facilities or end-of-life batteries. Given that China has the largest electric vehicle market and is forecast to account for 85% of 2025 battery production, China’s recycling industry has ready access to substantial volumes of feedstock.
The collected scrap is then pre-treated, typically through a mechanical shredding process, toproduce a material known as black mass. This material contains lithium, nickel, cobalt and other valuable battery minerals.
Outside of China, pre-treatment is the stage for which many regions have primarily built capacity. For example, of the 38 operational recycling assets in Europe,28 focus on pre-treatment only.
The black mass is then refined into chemicals for use in the production of new battery cathode materials. Some refiners convert black mass directly into pre-cathode active material (pCAM), whereas others produce chemicals that may need further refining before they are ready to be used in CAM or pCAM production processes.
China and South Korea both have large overcapacities of refining capacity, meaning they must source feedstock from other regions such asEurope and North Americawhich have a deficit of refining capacity.
To find out more about Benchmark’s recycling data,click here.
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