BMW Group announced Friday a new partnership with SK tes to recycle EV batteries across Europe, expanding its closed-loop recycling program that began in China in 2022. The initiative will recover valuable materials including cobalt, nickel, and lithium from used batteries for reuse in new battery production.
The partnership, which launched in November 2024, will process high-voltage batteries from BMW’s European development, production, and market operations that are no longer suitable for use. The program is expected to expand to North America by 2026.
“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 Circular Economy at BMW AG.
The recycling process involves mechanically shredding batteries to concentrate metals into a material called black mass. A chemical process called hydrometallurgy then recovers the valuable materials, which will be used in BMW’s new GEN 6 drive train among other applications.
“The promotion of circular economy is an important strategic topic for the BMW Group,” said Nadine Philipp, Vice President Sustainability Supplier Network. “The development of recyclable products, the increase of secondary materials in our components, and the closing of loops play an equally important role. And by the means of circular economy we are also increasing our resilience in the supply chains.”
SK tes’s battery recycling process has received multiple awards, including the Business Intelligence Group’s Sustainability Service of the Year and the UN Global Compact’s Apex Award.
The initiative builds on BMW’s existing circular economy efforts, which include its Recycling and Dismantling Centre, operating for 30 years. The company follows principles of Re:Think, Re:Duce, Re:Use, and Re:Cycle in its resource conservation strategy, aiming to transform end-of-life vehicles into raw materials for new cars.
