Cirba, Batteries Plus expand retail battery recycling

Battery recycler Cirba Solutions and national retailer Batteries Plus have agreed to partner on expanded US battery recycling services.

North Carolina-based Cirba will process batteries, including lead acid and lithium-ion, that consumers bring to one of Batteries Plus' 700 US locations. Cirba will extract critical minerals that can be used as feedstock in the production of new batteries, the company said on Wednesday.

The collaboration will target household batteries and small electronics, boosting supply of domestically produced battery-grade materials. The partnership also aims to reduce the amount of batteries that end up in material recovery facilities (MRFs), where they pose fire and environmental risks.

Cirba signed an agreement in December with Toyota to process end-of-life electric vehicle (EV) and plug-in hybrid batteries at its shredding facility in Lancaster, Ohio. The company said its recycling process can recover 95pc of the critical minerals found in those batteries.

By Alex Nicoll