What is the current state of the recycling market for lithium batteries in China?

1, lithium battery size and recycling demand

The market for new-energy vehicles began to grow rapidly in 2014, and new-energy vehicles emerged as early as the 2008 Olympic Games. According to the corresponding scrapping standards, the market for end-of-life batteries for power batteries has begun to take shape. It is expected that by 2018, the recycling market for power batteries in China will begin to take shape. Accumulated used power batteries of 12.08 GWH, the cumulative scrap volume will reach 172,500 tons. According to estimates, in 2018, the recycling market created by recycling cobalt, nickel, manganese, lithium, iron and aluminum from used power lithium batteries will reach 5.323 billion Yuan, reach 10.1 billion Yuan in 2020, and will reach 25 billion Yuan in 2023.

2, power lithium battery recovery treatment

There are two main paths for power cell recovery. One is for batteries that have not been scrapped but can not be used by electric vehicles. That is, the echelon use of used cells refers to the removal of batteries and the testing and screening of modules. Reassembly uses fields such as energy storage; The second is the dismantling, recycling and reuse of power cells that have been scrapped. This is the focus of power battery recycling.

At present, the end-of-life treatment of power cells is mainly dismantling and recycling. However, the recycling enterprises are generally small in size and the process level is not sound. There are also some enterprises that do not have recycling qualifications that illegally engage in the recycling of used power batteries. Ladder use is a very good idea in theory, but it is difficult to implement for current power batteries. Mainly because of the large number of domestic power battery models, the inconsistent structure of battery packs, and the diversity of assembly processes and technologies, the technical requirements in the process of unpacking are very high, and the technology and cost of the production line are very high. In addition, the quality of domestic batteries is mixed, and many batteries may actually run on electric vehicles for 3-4 years before they are close to scrapping.

3, power lithium battery recovery body

The current recycling body of power batteries mainly consists of recycling workshops, professional recycling companies and government recycling centers. The recycling system, which is dominated by power battery manufacturers or electric vehicle companies, has not yet appeared.

At present, the recycling channels of power batteries are mainly small recovery workshops, and there are fewer professional recycling companies and government recycling centers. The system needs to be reorganized. Most of the used power batteries flow into the lack of qualified refurbishment workshops. These companies are behind in their craft equipment. However, if the formal enterprises that are registered and taxed according to the law are qualified and discharged according to national standards, it will inevitably lead to a lack of price competitiveness. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the policy to ensure the sustainable development of battery recycling industry.

The professional recycling company is a specialized enterprise that has been approved by the state to recycle and dispose of used power batteries. It has strong comprehensive strength, advanced technology equipment, and process specifications, which can not only maximize the recycling of available resources, but also reduce environmental pollution. At present, the companies that carry out power battery recovery mainly include Shenzhen Greensmith, Bangpu Recycling Technology, Lithium and Chaowei Group. Although there are more and more companies in the area of lithium battery recycling, there is a lack of government system support and policy incentives.

The establishment of recycling centers by local governments at all levels will be conducive to the scientific and standardized management of the battery recycling market, the improvement of the recycling network, the rational distribution of the recycling network and the recycling market, and the improvement of the recovery volume of formal channels. However, at present, there is no government recycling center for power batteries in China, but in the future, we can choose to develop according to the reality of our country.

4, recycling business model discussion

Recovery model based on battery manufacturer

Under this model, power battery manufacturers use the sales network of electric vehicles to rebuild and recycle used batteries in reverse logistics. Electric car manufacturers need to cooperate with the recycling of power battery companies. Consumers return end-of-life batteries to nearby electric vehicle sales services and electric car manufacturers transfer them to battery manufacturers at agreed prices. In addition, when recycling used electric vehicles, scrap car dismantling enterprises also need to sell dismantled used power batteries directly to power battery manufacturers. In the form of recycling, use the "old for new" method to encourage consumers to actively return used batteries.

Industry Alliance Recovery Model

Under this model, it is mainly composed of power battery manufacturers, electric car manufacturers or battery leasing companies in the industry, and jointly invested in the establishment of a special recycling organization to be responsible for the recycling of power batteries. The main feature of this model is the establishment of a unified recycling organization in the industry, strong influence, wide coverage, and easy for consumers to return batteries. The proceeds from recycling are used for the construction and operation of recycling networks.

Third party recovery model

This model needs to build a recycling network and related logistics system alone to recover the used power batteries in the after-sale market of the commissioned enterprises, first return to the recycling process, and then conduct specialized treatment. In addition, automotive dismantling enterprises can also sell used power batteries directly to third-party enterprises. However, the establishment of this model requires greater equipment, networks, and manpower investment and higher costs.

Compared with the three models, the cost recovery efficiency of the industry alliance is the best, but it requires the establishment of companies in the industry. At present, it is difficult to operate power battery policies and regulations without clarity and perfection. Taken together, the recycling model led by power battery manufacturers is less costly and easy to implement.

5, foreign battery recovery system

Germany: Government legislation is recycled, producers bear the main responsibility, and funds are set up to improve the recycling system. The German battery recycling regulations mainly rely on the EU Waste Framework Directive and the Battery Recycling Directive. Recycling regulations require battery manufacturers, sellers, recyclers, and consumers to have corresponding recovery responsibilities and obligations. Battery manufacturers bear the main recovery responsibilities. Vendors must cooperate with battery manufacturers in recycling, and consumers should return used batteries to the corresponding recycling system.

Japan: Manufacturers dominate battery recycling and enter the "recycling" model directly. Various types of companies participate in battery recycling. At present, Japan has initially established a battery recycling system for battery production, sales, recycling and recycling. At the same time, the Japanese people have spontaneously established many non-governmental organizations to participate in the recycling of used battery products. Since 2000, the Japanese government has stipulated that manufacturers should be responsible for the recovery of lithium batteries and give resource recovery product-oriented design; After battery recovery, it is returned to the battery manufacturer for treatment and the government provides corresponding subsidies. In addition, many Japanese companies also participate in the battery recycling system. In addition to electric vehicles and specialized recycling companies, major Japanese communications companies have also jointly established a lithium battery autonomous recycling promotion committee, stating that they are pushed from responsibility to the recycling of lithium batteries. Strive for a significant increase in the recovery rate of lithium batteries.

The United States: The market is mainly regulated. The government manages from the perspective of environmental protection and assists in promoting the recycling of used power batteries. The government adopts an additional environmental fee method. When consumers purchase batteries, they charge a certain amount of handling fees and a part of the battery production company's investment in recovery fees. As a financial support for the end-of-life recycling of products, the waste battery recycling company will use the negotiated price to purify the raw materials. Sell to battery manufacturers. In the United States, two major organizations, RBRC and PRBA, promote and guide the public to cooperate with the recycling of used batteries to protect the natural environment. RBRC is a non-profit public service organization that mainly promotes the recycling of rechargeable batteries; PRBA is a non-profit battery association composed of battery companies. It mainly develops recycling plans and measures to achieve the recycling of industrial batteries. Among them, RBRC provides three programmers to collect, transport and reuse used and rechargeable batteries: the retail recycling programmer, the community recycling programmer, and the corporate and public sector recycling programmer.

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