Toyota US EV battery recycling project could go global

Toyota Motor North America says it’s on a mission to create a sustainable, closed-loop battery ecosystem for its electrified powertrains.

This mission focuses not only on the collection, testing and recycling of batteries into raw materials to create a sustainable supply chain, but also aims to develop second-life opportunities for remanufactured and repurposed Toyota hybrid electric vehicle batteries by leveraging battery health screening tools and empowering data from its vehicles.

It’s collaborating with Redwood Materials, founded by former Tesla chief technology officer JB Straubel, to explore a series of end-of-life battery solutions for Toyota’s proposed battery ecosystem.

“Initially, this collaboration will focus on the collection, testing and recycling of Toyota hybrid electric vehicle batteries,” Toyota says.

“The companies will then look to expand into other areas such as battery health screening and data management, remanufacturing and battery material supply throughout North America.”

Toyota aims to reduce its environmental footprint and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

“We are committed to developing sustainable solutions that allow our batteries to provide value beyond the initial lifecycle in an electrified vehicle,” says Toyota business development group vice president Christopher Yang.

Redwood Materials is driving down the environmental footprint and cost of lithium-ion batteries by offering large-scale sources of domestic anode and cathode materials produced from recycled batteries.

Redwood receives more than about 6GWh of end-of-life batteries annually for recycling, which are then refined and remanufactured into critical battery materials.

The company plans to ramp production of anode and cathode components in the US to 100GWh annually by 2025, enough to produce more than a million EVs a year.

Toyota and Redwood will investigate ways to seamlessly incorporate battery recycling through domestic battery materials manufacturing into Toyota’s battery production strategy, beginning with North America.

“Redwood and Toyota’s shared vision to drive down the environmental footprint and cost of transportation will continue to accelerate the adoption and access to electric vehicles,” says Redwood chief executive JB Straubel.

Toyota’s production plans include new and increased automotive battery production in the US, recently announcing US$1.29 billion investment in a new North American battery plant, Toyota Battery Manufacturing, North Carolina (TBMNC), expected to produce battery packs for 1.2 million electrified vehicles annually.

The brand expects to sell eight million electrified vehicles globally by 2030.