Audi and battery recycler Redwood Materials are teaming up to collect used batteries from electric toothbrushes, mobile phones, and other lithium-ion-powered gadgets at Audi shops around the country.
Starting in December, customers can leave their rechargeable computers, cell phones, electric bicycles, electric scooters, electric toothbrushes, vacuum cleaners, electric drills, and other devices at local retailers.
This is the first time the Nevada-based recycler has collaborated with an automotive manufacturer to collect lithium-ion batteries from private households, and it’s thanks to the new program that’s expanding Redwood’s association to recycle batteries for Audi and Volkswagen EVs.
Containers will be shipped to a central collection site, where batteries and other gadgets will be processed.
As the market leader in recycling used batteries, Redwood is in a great position to help with the shortage of raw materials that’s making it hard for automakers to reach their sales goals for electric vehicles. The millions of new electric vehicles expected to hit the road in the near future can be supplied by establishing a closed-loop home battery supply chain to comply with incentive rules under the Reduction Act of inflation.
Electric vehicles with batteries made from recycled materials will also be eligible for tax breaks under the new legislation.
According to AquaMetals, by 2030, the year most automakers have set for eliminating gasoline-powered vehicles, about 15 million metric tons of lithium-ion batteries will have been retired. Redwood predicts that during the next decade, global demand for lithium-ion batteries would increase by a factor of six or more than 500%.
