The plant is scheduled to go into operation in the summer of 2023
04/06/2023
Source: Energy & Management Powernews
Bosch Rexroth, Remondis and Rhenus are committed to building a European recycling economy for batteries. A plant in Magdeburg is to run fully automatically.
According to Bosch estimates, electric cars will account for around 70 percent of all newly registered passenger cars in Europe in 2030. Accordingly, the demand for batteries and capacities for their recycling will increase in order to recover raw materials such as lithium, cobalt or nickel.
"Electromobility can only establish itself in the long term if sufficient raw materials are available for the production of batteries. Recycling has a key role to play and helps to place our value creation on a sustainable footing," explains Bosch CEO Stefan Hartung. Recycling must be firmly integrated into the life cycle of products if the establishment of a European circular economy is to succeed.
For this purpose, Bosch has developed machines, equipment and software, according to a statement from the group. In it, the company announces Bosch Rexroth will supply Europe's first fully automated system for unloading and dismantling battery modules to a joint venture between Remondis subsidiary TSR Recycling and Rhenus Automotive called the "Battery Lifecycle Company."
With this in mind, Bosch refers to a study by the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (ISI), according to which recycling capacities for 420,000 tons of battery material per year will have to be created in Europe by 2030.
"The batteries currently installed in vehicles will have reached the end of their life in ten to 15 years. We need to take advantage of this window of opportunity to establish the appropriate recycling capacities," said Steffen Haack, Chairman of the Board of Management of Bosch Rexroth AG.
Europe's first fully automated battery recycling plant is currently being built at the Battery Lifecycle Company site in Magdeburg. There, used batteries from different manufacturers will be tested, deep-discharged and prepared for subsequent shredding. According to Bosch, it will be possible to automatically discharge eight lithium-ion batteries from electric cars in less than 15 minutes. By contrast, a deep discharge still takes up to 24 hours with the manual process currently used.
Up to 15,000 metric tons of battery material are to be recycled annually in Magdeburg. The plant is scheduled to go into operation in the summer of 2023.
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