The Swedish automaker and battery company CATL are teaming up to turn old electric vehicle batteries into new ones. The partnership aims to further reduce the carbon footprint of electric vehicles by recycling key components of traction batteries.
Last year was a “key milestone” for Volvo, according to CEO Jim Rowan. Volvo has sold more than 113,000 electric cars in 2023, which is 70% more than the year before. In addition, electric vehicles accounted for 16% of Volvo's total vehicle sales in 2023.
As sales of electric vehicles continue to grow, many batteries will eventually be retired, and Volvo believes it has a solution to their disposal problem. That is why Volvo and CATL are teaming up to recycle old and damaged electric vehicle batteries.
Volvo's suppliers will disassemble the batteries to use more than 90% of key materials such as nickel, cobalt, lithium and others. According to Volvo, CATL will then use the materials to make new electric vehicle batteries. In 2019, Volvo and CATL signed a long-term agreement to supply batteries for Volvo and Polestar electric models.
The Swedish automaker aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 75% for each of its cars by 2030. In its 2023 annual report, the company revealed that it had already reduced this figure by 20% from its 2018 baseline.