From Electric Vehicles to Raw Material Sources: Why Battery Recycling Is Becoming a Gamechanger for Investors

Batteries are the backbone of the energy and mobility transition. Their importance grows with every installed solar system, every new EV on the road, and every newly deployed energy-storage unit. Annual demand for lithium, nickel, cobalt, and graphite is rising rapidly — highlighting how dependent the industry is on just a few mining regions.

This dynamic affects several strategic themes:

• Security of raw material supplies in a volatile geopolitical world

• CO₂-reduction targets across the entire supply chain

• Cost stability for energy and automotive manufacturers

• Sustainability in production and disposal

It is exactly at this intersection that our Green Tech Portfolio is positioned.

Until today, the battery industry has largely followed a linear model:
extraction → processing → cell production → use → disposal or storage.

This leads to ecological, social, and economic risks:

• High water and energy consumption in mining

• Dependence on individual countries

• Volatile raw material prices

• Growing volumes of end-of-life batteries

At the same time, most of the valuable metals inside a used battery remain almost chemically intact. They are not waste — they are urban mines.

A transition to a circular economy, the core of sustainable value creation, is therefore unavoidable.

This development aligns directly with the focus of our Innovation Portfolio.

Through its new Battery Regulation and the Critical Raw Materials Act, the EU is setting clear frameworks that will transform the entire industry.

Key elements include:

• Minimum shares of recycled materials in new batteries

• Transparent CO₂ accounting

• Mandatory recycling quotas for lithium, nickel, and cobalt

• Introduction of a digital battery passport

• Support for European processing and recycling supply chains

Recycling is no longer optional — it becomes a legal prerequisite for market access in Europe.

For investors, this means long-term regulatory certainty and growth visibility.

The recycling process consists of several technologically advanced but highly scalable steps:

1. Disassembly & Pre-processing

Batteries are inspected, discharged, opened, and metal housings removed.

2. Shredding & Black Mass Production

The electrochemical core is processed into a powder known as Black Mass, which contains lithium, nickel, manganese, cobalt, and graphite.

3. Hydrometallurgy

Chemical processes recover the metals at high purity.
Recovery rates of 90–95% are now realistic — a milestone in both sustainability and economic viability.

Many of the companies behind these technologies belong to the innovation landscape evaluated within our Innovation Portfolio.

The coming years will see significant volume growth driven by:

• Rising numbers of end-of-life EV batteries

• Production scrap from gigafactories

• Regulatory pressure

• Raw material shortages and price volatility

Estimates suggest that by 2030, the battery-recycling market will be several times larger than today. Europe, the U.S., and major Asian markets are investing heavily in their own circular-economy structures.

For investors, this creates a segment in which growth is driven not cyclically, but politically, technologically, and structurally.

A clear focus area of our Green Tech Portfolio.

Redwood Materials (USA)

Redwood Materials is considered a technological pioneer in closed-loop recycling. It works with leading EV manufacturers and uses hydrometallurgical processes to recover materials like lithium, nickel, cobalt, copper, and graphite in battery-grade quality.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, more than 95% of critical battery metals can be recovered and directly reintegrated into anode and cathode material production.

Sources:
DOE: https://www.energy.gov/lpo/articles/lpo-offers-conditional-commitment-redwood-materials-produce-critical-electric-vehicle
Redwood Materials: https://www.redwoodmaterials.com/resources/how-battery-recycling-works/

Northvolt “Revolt” (Europe)

Northvolt is implementing one of Europe’s most ambitious circular strategies. Through its Revolt program, the company aims to source 50% of raw materials for battery production from recycling by 2030.
Northvolt has already produced the first lithium-ion cell whose nickel, manganese, and cobalt were 100% recovered from recycled batteries — a major milestone for the European battery industry.
The company is simultaneously expanding production and recycling capacities, establishing a holistic circular approach that serves as a blueprint for Europe.

Source:
https://northvolt.com/articles/revolt/

1. Technology Providers

• Recycling systems

• Automated disassembly

• Sorting and chemical recovery processes
  → High margins through proprietary technologies

2. Vertically Integrated Recyclers

• Direct access to feedstock

• Production of cathode & anode materials
  → Raw material security & cost stability

3. OEMs with Circular Strategies

Manufacturers investing early benefit from CO₂ advantages, cost efficiency, and regulatory protection.

For investors, this creates a broad range of opportunities — from deep-tech specialists to major industrial partners.

• Technology maturity, scalability, energy efficiency

• Access to battery feedstock and collection structures

• Regulatory compliance, certification, EU alignment

• Partnerships with OEMs, cell producers, energy companies

• Raw material risks: price hedging, market volatility

• ESG transparency & verifiable CO₂ footprint

Battery recycling is not only an environmental necessity — it is a central lever for balancing resource security, cost stability, and sustainability. The emerging market offers strong, policy-supported growth prospects.

For investors seeking to combine future technologies with sustainable industrial development, this segment is a strategic key market.

Portfolio Context

Green Tech Portfolio
Sustainable, resource-efficient technologies
https://globalstrategic.ch/green-tech-portfolio/

Innovation Portfolio
Future technologies, materials science & tech leaders
https://globalstrategic.ch/en/innovation-portfolio/