Ecobat to recycle Volkswagen Group UK’s EV batteries

Dallas-based Ecobat says it has signed an agreement with Volkswagen Group United Kingdom Ltd. (VWG UK) to collect and recycle electric vehicle (EV) batteries.

Under this latest agreement, Ecobat will collect high-voltage EV batteries from dealers, distributors and end-of-life recycling centers using Ecobat’s vehicles that comply with the Agreement Concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR). Batteries will be processed at Ecobat’s new U.K. lithium-ion recycling center, which is its third facility.  The company also has facilities in Germany and Arizona. 

The companies have a longstanding relationship that dates back to 2014. At that time, Ecobat says it started collecting lead-acid batteries for TPS, the Volkswagen Group Genuine Parts provider to the independent motor trade. The contract was expanded in 2019, when Ecobat started working with high-voltage batteries. Since the company’s U.K. Diagnostics and Disassembly Centre in Darlaston in the West Midlands was opened, Ecobat says has processed and upgraded thousands of batteries.
    
“I’m pleased to be extending and expanding our relationship with Ecobat,” says Director of One Aftersales for Volkswagen Group UK Sylvain Charbonnier. As we move to decarbonize road transport, the number of electric vehicles in our car park is rapidly increasing, and we need to ensure sustainability throughout the life cycle. Working with our trusted partners, we are confident we can reassure our dealers and customers that we are responsibly moving towards our electrification goals.”

Ecobat Vice President of Global Sales Elliott Ethridge, says, “We have been recycling lead batteries for VWG UK for a decade, and we are delighted to be able to extend our relationship to recycle EV lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion is a fast-growing technology, and our recycling operations can handle everything from small-format batteries to EV batteries. We also recover scrap, byproducts end-of-life, and damaged products to help make lithium-ion battery production more sustainable. Our expertise in recycling and recovering scarce battery materials will benefit both Volkswagen Group and the environment.”

Volkswagen AG says it will have roughly 50 fully electric models in the market by 2030, the result of investing around 180 billion euros in digitalization and electrification by 2027. Volkswagen Group UK offers about 15 electric vehicles in the U.K., which is set to increase. In 2023 the group accounted for more than 1 in 5 passenger car BEV registrations in the U.K., Ecobat says.