EV Batteries Aren’t Disposable—Recycling Has Been Happening for Years

The myth that electric-vehicle batteries are single-use trash is flat-out wrong. Recycling EV batteries at scale has been a reality for over a decade, with automakers and specialist firms already recovering more than 95% of the lithium, cobalt, and other valuable metals from old packs.

Volkswagen opened a battery-recycling plant in 2021 that hit that 95% recovery rate from day one, while Nissan and Sumitomo Corporation launched a joint recycling venture in 2009 whose dedicated facility has been running since 2018. They’re not alone: Ascend Elements, Cirba Solutions, Glencore, and Redwood Materials all operate similar programs.

The industry’s ultimate goal is a closed-loop system—turning old EV batteries into raw material for new ones, eliminating the need for freshly mined metals and slashing environmental impact. Contrast that with internal-combustion fuels, which are burned once and gone forever.

The takeaway? If someone claims EV batteries can’t be recycled, they’re either misinformed or deliberately spreading misinformation.