How battery recyclers and manufacturers can collaborate to improve material recovery

The Benefits of Industry Collaboration in Maximizing Material Reuse

A Critical Need for Collaboration in the Battery Value Chain

As global demand for batteries accelerates, the availability of critical raw materials — such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel — is becoming increasingly strained. This scarcity, coupled with rising environmental and regulatory pressures, places a growing emphasis on material recovery. In this context, how battery recyclers and manufacturers can collaborate to improve material recovery is becoming one of the most important questions in the battery value chain today.

Effective collaboration between recyclers and manufacturers is no longer a theoretical ideal. It is a practical necessity to ensure the sustainability, efficiency, and resilience of battery production. By working together, these two pillars of the value chain can close the loop, reduce dependency on virgin materials, and pave the way for a more circular battery economy.

From Siloed Operations to Integrated Processes

Traditionally, battery manufacturing and recycling have operated in silos. Manufacturers have focused on performance, scale, and cost, while recyclers have been tasked with dealing with increasingly complex waste streams. This disconnection often leads to inefficiencies — from poor material recovery rates to higher processing costs and missed opportunities for reuse.

Closing this gap starts with shared design considerations. When manufacturers design batteries without involving recyclers, the result is often products that are difficult to disassemble or recover. By integrating recyclers’ input into the design phase, manufacturers can build batteries that are easier to dismantle, sort, and process — significantly improving the quality and quantity of materials recovered.

At the same time, recyclers can benefit from access to more detailed technical information about battery composition, structure, and chemistry. This data-sharing accelerates sorting processes, reduces the margin of error, and ultimately increases recovery rates — a win-win for both sides.

Creating Value Through Material Reuse

Beyond improving recovery rates, collaboration between recyclers and manufacturers opens the door to direct material reuse. When materials are recovered efficiently and with high purity, they can be reintroduced into the manufacturing cycle with minimal processing. This reduces the need for extraction, lowers emissions, and improves the environmental footprint of every new battery produced.

Such closed-loop systems are especially relevant as the EU’s new battery regulation pushes for more transparency and accountability across the supply chain. Manufacturers that source recycled materials from trusted partners not only reduce their carbon footprint, but also gain a competitive advantage by securing reliable, local sources of supply — a growing priority in an era of geopolitical instability and raw material shortages.

Building Long-Term Partnerships

To fully realize the benefits of material reuse, collaboration must go beyond occasional transactions. It requires long-term partnerships based on aligned incentives, shared goals, and mutual trust. Manufacturers and recyclers must work together to establish clear processes for battery return, disassembly, data exchange, and material reintegration.

Digital traceability tools, including battery passports, will play a key role in enabling this integration. When each battery can be tracked throughout its lifecycle — from cell to scrap — both manufacturers and recyclers gain unprecedented visibility, helping them coordinate operations and optimize resource flows.

These collaborations can also extend to joint R&D initiatives, co-investments in infrastructure, or shared innovation projects focused on new recycling techniques, cell chemistries, or second-life applications. The closer the cooperation, the more value can be created — both economically and environmentally.

Conclusion

In the race toward a circular battery economy, no actor can succeed in isolation. The question of how battery recyclers and manufacturers can collaborate to improve material recovery is not just about operational efficiency — it’s about building a more sustainable and resilient industry. Through open dialogue, shared design principles, and long-term partnerships, manufacturers and recyclers can jointly unlock the full potential of material reuse.

At Circu Li-ion, we work hand-in-hand with both recyclers and battery manufacturers to enable efficient, automated disassembly and recovery. By bridging the gap between production and end-of-life, we help our partners turn waste into value — and build the foundations of a truly circular battery economy.