EV AND CLEANTECH PULSE - Where EV batteries go to die and be reborn?

Look Out, Tesla, Here Comes Faraday Future (Eventually) BYD Electric Truck Sales Up 1,195% EU EV Mineral Demand and Deforestation: The CLEVER Scenario Solution Where EV batteries go to die and be reborn #EV, #cleantech, #batteries, #Tesla, #FaradayFuture, #BYD, #sustainability

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Welcome to Innovation Pulse, your quick, no-nonsense update on the latest in clean tech and EVs.

(00:10):
First, we will cover the latest news. Faraday Future is set to launch its budget-friendly
EVs, BYD's electric truck sales surge and EU's EV demand raises deforestation concerns.
After this, we'll dive deep into the transformative potential of EV battery recycling and its

(00:30):
role in creating sustainable industries. Faraday Future, an EV startup, is making waves as it
approaches the launch of its first production vehicle, Faraday X, after nine years of development.
Initially known for its expensive FF01 car, the company now targets the affordable EV market.

(00:52):
Faraday Future plans to offer vehicles starting at $20,000, with models like the Super One,
FX5 and FX6. Production will occur in California and South Korea, with future expansion in
China. Despite past financial struggles, the company has secured funding and is ready to

(01:13):
challenge Tesla and traditional automakers like General Motors and Toyota, aiming to
redefine affordability in the EV market. By June, Faraday Future plans to introduce
the FX Super One, promising lower prices than competitors like the Escalade and Alford.

(01:33):
The company seeks 10,000 pre-orders and hopes to offer budget-friendly alternatives to Tesla's
options. BYD's electric truck sales have skyrocketed, showing a 1,195% increase from January to April.
While BYD's electric buses have gained attention over the years, their sales recently declined

(01:58):
by 41.4% year over year last month. However, the non-bus commercial vehicle sales have surged,
with sales growing from 525 units in April last year to 7,080 units this April.
The January to April comparison also shows a growth from 1,595 units in 2024 to 20,659

(02:27):
in 2025. This strong growth continued even through the Chinese New Year, defying concerns
of a potential drop after December's peak. The demand for BYD's various electric trucks
has exploded for reasons yet to be fully understood, setting a promising pace for the rest of the year.

(02:50):
Join us as we discover the impact of EV mineral demand. A recent report from the OECD forum on
responsible mining highlights the environmental impact of the European Union's growing demand
for electric vehicles on global forests and indigenous communities. It predicts significant
deforestation unless policy changes are made. Under current practices, 118,000 hectares of

(03:15):
forests could be lost, equivalent to 18 football fields daily. However, adopting new battery
technologies and mobility measures could reduce this deforestation by 82%. The study emphasizes
the use of LFP batteries over NMC 811, which require fewer minerals like nickel and cobalt.

(03:39):
Responsible sourcing from low deforestation countries and promoting shared mobility can
further mitigate impacts. The report stresses the need for sustainable practices to ensure that the
transition to green transport does not harm forests and communities. And now pivot our discussion

(04:00):
towards the main clean tech topic. All right everybody, welcome to another episode of Innovation
Pulse, where we take the pulse of the latest breakthroughs reshaping our world. I'm your
host, Donna, and as always, I'm joined by my brilliant co-host who never runs out of energy,

(04:22):
unlike the batteries we're discussing today. Thanks for that electrifying introduction, Donna.
I'm Yakov Lasker, and today we're diving into a topic that's literally transforming trash into
treasure. The fascinating world of EV battery recycling. Electric vehicles are everywhere
these days, Yakov. I feel like half my neighborhood traded in their gas guzzlers for EVs last year.

(04:45):
The numbers back up your observation, Donna. According to the International Energy Agency,
nearly one in five cars sold globally in 2023 was electric. That's a massive 35% increase compared
to 2022, bringing the total number of EVs on roads worldwide to about 40 million. Wow, that's a lot

(05:07):
of batteries. But I've always wondered, what happens to those massive battery packs when they're too
worn out to power a vehicle anymore? I've heard they're notoriously difficult to recycle. That's
exactly the problem. These batteries contain incredibly valuable materials. Lithium, nickel,
cobalt, graphite. But they're all mixed together in this complex structure that's challenging to

(05:33):
break down. And here's the kicker. Over half the world's nickel comes from Indonesia,
while two thirds of all cobalt comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
And both those countries have some serious issues with mining practices and human rights,
right? Exactly. So there's this perfect storm brewing skyrocketing demand for these materials

(05:56):
as the world electrifies, limited supply concentrated in problematic regions,
and batteries that are super difficult to recycle once they're done powering your Tesla or Nissan
Leaf. So what's the solution here? I mean, we can't just have mountains of dead EV batteries
piling up. This is where some fascinating innovation is happening. There's this British

(06:18):
company called Altilium that's developed a process to essentially resurrect dead batteries.
Resurrection? Sounds almost spiritual, Yaakov. Ha! Well, it's actually a lot messier than that.
They start with what they call black mass, which is basically what you get after shredding old
batteries into this fine dark powder. Each particle is smaller than a millimeter. Imagine

(06:43):
taking a battery and pulverizing it almost to oblivion. Not exactly the kind of black mass I'd
want to attend. So what do they do with this battery dust? So this is where the chemistry gets really
cool. Traditional battery recycling often used a high temperature process called pyrometallurgy,
which basically means melting everything down. Problem is that creates significant emissions

(07:08):
which defeats part of the purpose of going electric in the first place. Right. No point in making our
climate situation worse while trying to make it better. Precisely. So instead, Altilium uses a
water-based approach called hydrometallurgy. They soak this black powder in sulfuric acid,
which lets them filter out graphite. That's the same stuff in pencil lead, by the way,

(07:33):
which is used in battery anodes. Okay, so they extract the graphite first. Then what? They're
left with this acidic liquid that has all kinds of metals dissolved in it. Some aren't very valuable.
Aluminum, copper, iron, they can make those precipitate out by adjusting the acidity,
basically creating a grey powder that could be used as filler in building materials.

(07:56):
So they're finding uses even for the less valuable stuff. Smart. Right. And then we get to
the real treasure hunt, extracting the valuable nickel, cobalt, and manganese. This is where it
gets wild. They mix the liquid with kerosene and special chemicals that pull each metal out one
by one. Their lab is filled with these glass tubes containing vivid blue and green liquids.

(08:20):
Wait, so they're literally separating each metal individually? That sounds incredibly precise.
It is. And that's actually a smart approach, because battery chemistry is constantly evolving.
By isolating each metal, they can supply battery manufacturers with the exact mixes they want
for new cathodes. It's like instead of giving someone a cake, you're giving them all the

(08:42):
ingredients separately, so they can make whatever recipe they prefer. Make sense. So Altilium isn't
the only company working on this problem, right? Definitely not. There's significant activity in
the US partly motivated by the Inflation Reduction Act passed in 2022. Companies like Licycle have

(09:02):
plants in Canada, the US, and Germany. Redwood Materials, founded by a former Tesla exec,
has partnerships with major automakers like Toyota, VW, and BMW. Sounds like there's a real race
happening. Are all these companies using the same approach? Not exactly. There are different methods
being explored, but the goal is the same, creating what experts call a closed-loop EV

(09:29):
battery supply chain. Basically, we need to stop thinking of batteries as having an end of life
and instead see them as renewable resources. I love that concept. So instead of constantly
mining new lithium and nickel from the ground, we just keep recycling what we already have.
Exactly. And the potential impact is huge. Researchers estimate that by 2040, over half

(09:53):
the demand for lithium and nickel for EV batteries could be supplied by recycling.
That would dramatically reduce the need for new mining operations. That would be a game changer,
both environmentally and economically. But let's get real here. Are we talking about some lab
experiment that might work in 10 years? Or is this actually happening now? It's definitely moving

(10:15):
from lab to reality. Altilium is commissioning a larger plant near Plymouth that will supply
recycled materials to battery manufacturers. And they're not just theorizing. They've
actually manufactured battery cells using recycled materials from end-of-life electric vehicle
batteries. Okay, but scale is important here, right? I mean, with 40 million EVs already on the road

(10:39):
and more coming every day, can these recycling operations actually keep up? That's the million
question, Donna. Currently, the lithium-ion battery recycling market is still in its early stages.
But Altilium, for example, has plans for progressively larger facilities. Their goal
is to process about 150,000 EV batteries per year. That sounds impressive, but is it enough?

(11:04):
Well, one expert from Imperial College London estimates that in the next 5-10 years,
recycling could provide between 10% and 40% of the raw materials needed for EV batteries.
So it's significant, but not a complete solution yet. And I imagine cost is another factor here.
Is recycled battery material actually cost competitive with newly mined materials?

(11:28):
According to Altilium, they believe they can produce materials at around 20% lower cost than
commercial material. That would be a huge advantage if they can achieve it at scale.
So beyond the obvious environmental benefits, there are also economic incentives driving this
recycling push. Absolutely, and don't forget the geopolitical angle. Christian Marston,

(11:49):
Altilium's president, makes a really interesting point about this. He says,
the future economies will be the ones which control the critical minerals.
For countries like the UK that don't have large natural deposits of these materials,
recycling becomes a matter of national security and economic independence.
So instead of relying on imports from potentially unstable regions,

(12:12):
you secure your supply chain by recycling what you already have. That's actually brilliant.
Exactly. Marston views batteries already in the UK as a strategic asset.
Rather than shipping those dead batteries abroad to be recycled, possibly in countries with poor
environmental and labour standards, they can process them domestically and keep the economic

(12:35):
value at home. It sounds like governments are starting to recognise this opportunity too, right?
They are. The European Union introduced a new battery regulation in 2023 that will phase in
increasingly strict requirements for recycling efficiency, material recovery and recycled
content starting in 2025. The International Energy Agency notes that greater recycling of

(12:59):
critical minerals could reduce the need for new mining by as much as 40% by mid-century.
So this isn't just some green pipe dream, it's becoming policy.
Exactly. And it dispels the myth that EV batteries just end up in landfills,
which is a common criticism of electric vehicles. These batteries contain far too many valuable

(13:21):
materials to throw away, not to mention they contain toxic components that shouldn't be in
landfills anyway. It's interesting how the whole industry is evolving, Yaakov. When EVs first started
going mainstream, I don't think there was much thought given to what would happen to the batteries
after 8-10 years of use. You're right. The focus was mainly on getting EVs on the road in the first

(13:42):
place, but that's how innovation works. You solve one problem which creates new challenges,
which drives new solutions. It's the innovation pulse that keeps beating. I see what you did there.
So let me ask you this. For our listeners who might be EV owners or considering buying one,
what's the takeaway here? I think there are a few big ones. First, the EV revolution isn't

(14:07):
just about the cars, it's creating entire new industries and technological innovations around
them. Second, the environmental benefits of EVs will become even more significant as battery
recycling scales up. And third, this is another example of how circular economy concepts are
starting to become reality. For those not familiar with the term, a circular economy is basically

(14:33):
where we design products and systems to minimize waste and maximize reuse of materials, right?
Exactly. Instead of the traditional take-make-dispose model, we're moving toward a system where
materials cycle through the economy again and again. EV battery recycling is a perfect example
of this principle in action. So our batteries might have multiple lives, first powering our cars,

(14:57):
then perhaps being repurposed for grid storage, and finally being recycled into new batteries.
That's the vision. And it's not just about batteries. This same mindset is spreading to
many industries as we recognize that our resources are finite, but our ingenuity isn't.
Well said, Yakov. I think that's the perfect note to end on. For all our listeners considering an

(15:20):
EV purchase, maybe it's reassuring to know that the industry is working on solutions for the entire
life cycle of these vehicles. Absolutely. The road to truly sustainable transportation is still
being paved, but recycling innovations like these are helping to fill in some of the potholes.
Thanks for tuning in to Innovation Pulse, everyone. We'll be back next week with another deep dive

(15:42):
into the technologies shaping our future. Until then, keep innovating and keep pulsing.
Peace out, battery enthusiasts.
That's all for today's podcast. We've explored Faraday Future's plans to enter the affordable
EV market and BYD's impressive electric truck sales, alongside the growing importance of battery

(16:07):
recycling and its impact on sustainability and industry innovation. Don't forget to like,
subscribe and share this episode with your friends and colleagues so they can also stay
updated on the latest news and gain powerful insights. Stay tuned for more updates.