The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced more than $192 million in new funding for recycling batteries from consumer products, launching an advanced battery research and development (R&D) consortium, and continuing the Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Prize, which began in 2019. These investments are critical in supporting a secure, resilient, and circular domestic supply chain for critical materials and meeting the growing demand for electric vehicles (EVs) and stationary energy storage.
The lithium battery market is projected to increase by as much as ten-fold by 2030, which requires investing in sustainable, reduced-cost recycling of consumer batteries. Today’s announcement supports the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal to have EVs make up half of all vehicle sales in America by 2030 and builds on the nearly $3 billion announced to date from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for EV and battery technologies.
According to U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm, “The United States is leading the way in developing advanced battery technologies that will power our clean energy future and boost our global competitiveness. Thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, these investments in battery production and recycling will ensure the U.S. has a secure and sustainable domestic supply chain and strengthens our economy.”
As of April 2023, more than 3.6 million plug-in electric vehicles have been sold in America, with more than half of those sold since President Biden took office. Battery costs have fallen more than 90% since 2008, and energy density and performance have increased rapidly.
President Biden’s Investing in America agenda aims to grow the American economy from the bottom up and middle-out by rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure, creating a manufacturing and innovation boom, and building a clean-energy economy that combats climate change and makes communities more resilient.
One of the funding opportunities announced by the DOE is the $125 million Consumer Electronics Battery Recycling, Reprocessing, and Battery Collection, which is an essential part of the $7 billion authorized by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to grow and secure America’s battery supply chain. This funding aims to develop and implement education and/or behavior change campaigns to increase participation by consumers in existing battery recycling programs, improve the economics of recycling consumer electronics batteries, assist states and local governments in establishing or enhancing battery collection, recycling, and reprocessing programs, and help retailers implement programs to collect, sort, store, and transport consumer electronics batteries.
Projects selected for this funding must advance diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, contribute to energy equity, and invest in America’s workforce. Concept papers are due August 17, 2023, and the deadline for full applications is November 29, 2023.
The Advanced Battery R&D Consortium funding opportunity will provide up to $60 million to convene major manufacturers of electric drive vehicles in the U.S., universities, National Laboratory partners, mineral and material suppliers, and other key battery stakeholders to address critical battery needs for the next phase of widescale EV commercialization. The consortium seeks to advance battery R&D that is relevant and responsive to the needs of EV manufacturers, and to further develop a domestic battery supply chain and recycling capabilities that are essential to meeting the rapidly growing demand for EV batteries.
The Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Prize has to date awarded $5.5 million for innovative solutions to collecting, sorting, storing, and transporting spent and discarded lithium-ion batteries. In recognition of its ongoing importance in informing larger battery recycling efforts, DOE is announcing $7.4 million to fund a new Breakthrough Contest, as well as Phase IV of the Prize.
The Battery Recycling Prize incentivizes American entrepreneurs to develop and demonstrate technologies that, when scaled, have the potential to profitably capture 90% of all discarded or spent lithium-based batteries in the United States for recovery of key materials for re-introduction into the U.S. supply chain. The Breakthrough Contest is open to industry entrepreneurs, including new or former Prize participants, and will bolster participation from new competitors while providing additional support to Phase III winning teams. Phase IV: Demonstration of Impact will challenge participants to prove how effectively their solutions contribute to moving spent or discarded batteries from consumers to recyclers across all commercial uses.
These investments in battery production and recycling will ensure the U.S. has a secure and sustainable domestic supply chain, strengthen the economy, and contribute to building a clean-energy economy that combat climate change. Overall, the DOE’s announcements mark a significant step in meeting the growing demand for EVs and stationary energy storage and promoting sustainable, reduced-cost recycling of consumer batteries while supporting the United States’ global competitiveness.
