BMW Group has launched a pan-European partnership with SK Tes to recycle batteries using a special process that recovers cobalt, nickel and lithium from used batteries before returning them to the value chain to make new ones. This closed-loop system is set to expand to the US-Mexico-Canada region as early as 2026.
After successfully launching a closed-loop recycling system for the reuse of raw materials from high-voltage batteries as part of the BMW Brilliance Automotive Joint Venture (BBA) in China in 2022, the BMW Group has hit another milestone with this new partnership.
Used high-voltage batteries from BMW Group development, production and markets in Europe will be delivered to SK Tes, which will then convert them into high-quality metals that can be reintroduced to battery production. SK Tes will mechanically shred the batteries, during which process the metals will be concentrated to leave a material called black mass. The valuable materials – nickel, lithium and cobalt – will then be recovered via a highly effective chemical process called hydrometallurgy.
“Partnerships like this increase our efficiency in terms of the circular economy. In the closed-loop process, all partners mutually benefit from their experiences,” said Jörg Lederbauer, vice president of circular economy, spare parts supply for high-voltage batteries, and electric powertrain at BMW AG. SK Tes’s battery recycling process has won numerous sustainability and innovation awards worldwide, including the Business Intelligence Group’s Sustainability Service of the Year and the UN Global Compact’s Apex Award.
“The promotion of circular economy is an important strategic topic for the BMW Group,” said Nadine Philipp, vice president of supplier network sustainability at BMW AG. “The development of recyclable products, the increase of secondary materials in our components, and the closing of loops play an equally important role.”