Recycling facilities can be divided into »spokes« and »hubs« according to the depth of recycling, i.e. the input and output materials of the recycling process. The first steps of battery recycling, known as pre-treatment, take place mainly in the spokes. Here the used batteries are collected, discharged, dismantled and mechanically or by pyrolysis processed into the so-called black mass (a mixture of cathode and anode active materials) with the valuable metals such as Li, Ni and Co.
The actual recycling and refinement of the raw materials occurs in the hubs. Here, the black mass is refined using pyro- or hydrometallurgical processes or electrochemical processes, whereby valuable metals such as Li, Ni and Co are recovered. However, other less valuable but critical raw materials such as graphite or manganese are now also being included in the focus of the recovery process
Individual recycling projects include both pretreatment (spoke activity) and refinement (hub activity) at one location. These are labelled »spoke+hub« in the diagram, whereby the processing capacity corresponds to the maximum total quantity on the site per year.
Overall, battery recycling is very diverse and can be carried out using different process combinations - there is no ‘one’ recycling route. In Europe, hydrometallurgy is clearly emerging as the core process in the hubs. Pyrolysis is only occasionally used in pre-treatment or pyrometallurgy as a sub-process in refinement, e.g. at Umicore or Nickelhütte Aue.
Spokes are typically decentralised arranged to facilitate optimal collection logistics, whereas hubs for processing the black mass are often situated centrally and well connected in terms of infrastructure. This approach is partly also driven by the fact that the transportation of lithium-ion batteries is classified as dangerous goods, which is a costly endeavour. Yet conversely, the onward transportation of the black mass to the hubs is not a significant concern.
In Europe, the cumulative capacities of the hubs (status 2024: approx. 350 kt/a) currently exceed the capacities of the spokes (status 2024: approx. 300 kt/a). The current capacities of integrated recyclers (spoke and hub activities at one location at the same time) only amount to a few tens of kilotonnes per year. At first glance, the absolute number of hubs exceeds the number of spokes. Nevertheless, numerous hub activities represent either the installation or proclamation of capacity expansions of pre-existing facilities. Almost every player in European battery recycling is planning to set up several sites for its recycling activities.
Recycling capacities for lithium-ion batteries in Europe will increase to 330,000 tonnes per year by 2026
Information on the capacity of most recycling plants is publicly available. However, as not all plants have the same recycling depth, it is not possible to simply add these capacities together. The capacities for spokes and hubs can be added up separately, which provides an estimate of the total recycling capacities in Europe. Plants that cover all process steps are included in both the spoke and hub capacity accumulation. The capacities do not reflect the actual reserved capacities, but the publicly reported maximum capacity of a location.
In Europe, the total capacity of spokes for LIB recycling is expected to increase to 300,000 tonnes per year by the end of 2024. This already includes capacities that have been announced for this year, but have not yet been officially commissioned. Compared to 2023, this is almost a doubling of capacities (160,000 tonnes by the end of 2023), not least due to the announcements of Li-Cycle in Magdeburg, Eramet in Dunkirk and Re.Lion.Bat in Meppen with a cumulative capacity of 100,000 tonnes in 2024. With announced additional plants and expansions, capacities in Europe are expected to reach 330,000 t/a in 2026. By 2030, almost 370.000 t/a in pretreatment capacity has been announced.
After 2024, the announced capacities for recycling the black mass in hubs will also increase significantly. By 2030, the total capacity for material recovery would be 900 kt/a, almost double the pretreatment capacity. Whether and to what extent the import of black mass as feedstock for material recovery will play a role is still unclear.
A comparison of the planned recycling capacities with the forecast return volumes of recycled batteries and production scrap (the projected return volume in 2026 is approx. 270,000 tonnes per year) indicates that the cumulative planned capacities will exceed supply in the coming years (Figure 2).
