Reuse of Electric Vehicle Batteries in ASEAN

ERIA Research Project Report FY2023 No.
31
Reuse of Electric Vehicle Batteries

in ASEAN
Edited by
Naoko Doi
Alloysius Joko Purtanto
Shigeru Suehiro
Soichi Morimoto
Akira Takamine
Yasuo Kawada
Koichi Sasaki
Yuhji Matsuo
Reuse of Electric Vehicle Batteries in ASEAN
Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)

Sentral Senayan II 6th Floor
Jalan Asia Afrika No. 8, Gelora Bung Karno
Senayan, Jakarta Pusat 10270
Indonesia
© Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia, 2024

ERIA Research Project Report FY2023 No. 31
Published in March 2024
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted in any form by any means electronic or mechanical without prior written notice to and
permission from ERIA.
This report was prepared by the working group for the ‘Reuse of EV Batteries in ASEAN’ under the
Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) energy project. Members of the
working group discussed and agreed to utilise certain data and methodologies.
The findings, interpretations, conclusions, and views expressed in their respective chapters are
entirely those of the author/s and do not reflect the views and policies of the Economic Research
Institute for ASEAN and East Asia, its Governing Board, Academic Advisory Council, or the
institutions and governments they represent. Any error in content or citation in the respective
chapters is the sole responsibility of the author/s.
Material in this publication may be freely quoted or reprinted with proper acknowledgement.
ii
Foreword
In East Asia Summit (EAS) countries, progress has been made in recent years towards electrifying
the transport sector. Electric vehicles (EVs) are considered as the important technological options
for those EAS countries towards air quality improvement in urban areas, energy security
enhancement for shifting away from oil dependence, and climate change mitigation – if these are
coupled with low-carbon power generation sources.
In view of the future expansion of EVs on the road, policymakers of the EAS region would have to
prepare for establishing systems for reusing waste batteries from EVs. Currently not enough waste
batteries from EVs are available in the market but some private companies, especially vehicle
manufacturing companies, are undertaking projects, some of which have made a stride into
establishing a commercial business. Proper policies need to be established to assist private
companies’ efforts for lowering costs, at the same time to ensure safety in the use of reused
batteries from EVs.
This report has provided future projections of available used EV batteries in ASEAN. Its magnitude
is compared with the estimated need for stationary use for variable renewable energy sources. The
report has also provided policy implications for ASEAN countries towards facilitating the reuse of
batteries from EVs.
I hope the report will provide a good basis for ASEAN countries in the understanding over the
magnitude of future available used batteries from EVs and the needs for policymakers in efficient
and effective utilisation.
Toshiyuki Sakamoto
Director
The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan
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Acknowledgements
This analysis has been implemented by a working group under ERIA. It was a joint effort of working
group members from Indonesia and The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ). We would like
to acknowledge the support provided by everyone involved. We would especially like to express
our gratitude to the members of the working group.
Valuable insights were obtained from a number of government officials and analysis that were an
integral part of implementing this study.
Naoko Doi
Group Manager, Senior Economist
The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan
iv
Table of Contents
Foreword iii
Acknowledgements iv
List of Project Contributors vi
List of Figures vii
List of Tables ix
List of Abbreviations and Acronyms xi
Executive Summary xiii
Introduction xviii
Chapter 1 Electric Vehicle Policies in ASEAN Countries 1
Chapter 2 Potential of Electric Vehicle Battery Reuse in ASEAN Countries 17
Chapter 3 Electric Vehicle Battery Reuse and Recycling in Europe, the United 26
States, Japan, and China
Chapter 4 Reuse of Electric Vehicle Batteries: Economic Viability and 59
Environmental Impacts
Chapter 5 Recycling and Reuse of Appliances Outside ASEAN 74
Chapter 6 Policy Implications 88
v
List of Project Contributors
Mr Soichi Morimoto, Researcher, Climate Change Group, Climate Change and Energy Efficiency Unit,
The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ)
Mr Akira Takamine, Senior Researcher, Climate Change Group, Climate Change and Energy
Efficiency Unit, The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ)
Mr Yasuo Kawada, Senior Researcher, Climate Change Group, Climate Change and Energy Efficiency
Unit, The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ)
Mr Koichi Sasaki, Deputy Director, Climate Change and Energy Efficiency Unit, The Institute of
Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ)
Dr Yuhji Matsuo, Senior Researcher, Manager, Energy Data and Modeling Center, The Institute of
Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ)
Mr Shigeru Suehiro, Senior Researcher, Manager, Energy Data and Modeling Center, The Institute
of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ)
Dr Naoko Doi, Senior Economist, Manager, Energy Efficiency Group, Climate Change and Energy
Efficiency Unit, The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ)
vi
List of Figures
Figure 1.1 Roadmap of Swap Battery Stations in Indonesia 3

Figure 1.2 Passenger Vehicles EV Stock Share in Malaysia 8
Figure 2.1 Model Flow 18
Figure 2.2 Powertrain Sales Configuration by Scenario 20
Figure 2.3 Number of Used Batteries to be Generated (Reference) 21
Figure 2.4 Number of Used Batteries to be Generated (HEV Bridge) 22
Figure 2.5 Number of Used Batteries to be Generated (BEV Ambitious) 22
Figure 2.6 Cumulative Number of Used Batteries to be Generated (by Country/Model) 23
Figure 2.7 Comparing Numbers of the Used Batteries with Required Backup Battery for 24
VRE
Figure 3.1 Sales of PHEVs and BEVs in the United States 31
Figure 3.2 Reuse and Recycling of Battery in Japan 38
Figure 3.3 Overview of NEV Policies in China 40
Figure 3.4 New Vehicle Sales and Share of PHEVs and BEVs in China 43
Figure 3.5 EV Battery Installation in China 45
Figure 3.6 EV Battery Installation by Material Ratio in China 46
Figure 3.7 EV Battery Installation by Model Ratio in China 46
Figure 3.8 Total Recycling Rate, Ladder Utilisation Rate, and Processing Rate of Power 47
Batteries of the Applicant Enterprises
Figure 3.9 Overview of the Ecosystem of EV Battery Reuse and the Recycling Industry in 48
China
Figure 3.10 Flow of BYD Onboard Batteries Reused Overseas 49
Figure 3.11 Estimation of the Amount of Retired Power Batteries for NEVs 51
Figure 4.1 EV Battery Reuse and Recycling Process 60
Figure 4.2 Volume-weighted Average Pack and Cell Price Trends 62
Figure 4.3 Example of Lithium-ion Battery Cost Estimates using the Learning Curve 63
Figure 4.4 IEEJ’s Global Outlook for Lithium-Ion Battery for HEVs, PHEVs, and EVs 64
(Cumulative)
Figure 4.5 Estimated Cost of Lithium-Ion Battery (2016–2040) 64
Figure 4.6 Price Breakdown of a Repurposed Battery Placed on Market in 2030 65
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Figure 4.7 Average Sale Prices of Battery Packs (left) and EPR Contribution towards End 66
Repurposed Pack Costs (right) – Baseline Recycling Case and Baseline EV
Uptake
Figure 4.8 Benefits of EV Battery Reuse by Configuration 67
Figure 4.9 CO2 Emissions from Materials Fall by 70% in a Circular Scenario 68
Figure 4.10 4R Energy’s Applications of Used EV Batteries 71
Figure 4.11 Composition of EV Battery Pack 71
Figure 5.1 Share by Product Category in Total Collected Electronic and Electrical Waste 75
in the European Union
Figure 5.2 Recycling Rate of e-Waste in the European Union in 2017 76
Figure 5.3 Sales and Collection of Portable Batteries and Accumulators, EU-27, 2009– 76
2018
Figure 5.4 Outline of Home Appliance Recycling Law 80
Figure 5.5 Trend of Home Appliance Recycling Rate (%) 81
Figure 5.6 Process of Recycling End-of-life Small Home Appliances 81
Figure 5.7 Final Disposal Amount 82
Figure 5.8 Material Flow in Japan (2017) 83
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List of Tables
Table 1.1 Indonesia’s EV Stock Target 2

Table 1.2 Indonesia’s Luxury Tax on EVs, Plug-in Hybrids, and Hybrids 2
Table 1.3 Number of HEV/PHEV, and BEV Registrations from 2018 to 2020 in Indonesia 3
Table 1.4 Two and Three-wheeled EVs in Indonesia 4
Table 1.5 Four-wheeled and Other EVs in Indonesia 5
Table 1.6 Target Sales Share of EVs in Malaysia 6
Table 1.7 Economic Incentives for the Purchase of EVs in Malaysia 7
Table 1.8 Action Plan of EV Increases Specified in ‘Low Carbon Mobility Blueprint 2021– 8
2030’ in Malaysia
Table 1.9 Number of Electric Vehicles Registered (2019) and Market Projection (2020– 9
2021) in Philippines
Table 1.10 Electric Vehicle Companies in Philippines 10
Table 1.11 Key Incentives for EVs and EV stations of the Board of Investment in Thailand 13
Table 1.12 Number of HEV/PHEV and BEV Registrations from 2017 to 2020 in Thailand 14
Table 2.1 Battery Capacity of Each Powertrain (kWh) 19
Table 3.1 Summary of SWOT Analysis for the EV Battery Value Chain in the European 28
Union
Table 3.2 Overview of the Future Implementation Plan of EV Batteries Reuse and 29
Recycling in the European Union
Table 3.3 Overview of the EV Reuse Pilot Projects in the United States 32
Table 3.4 Overview of the EV Reuse Start-up Companies in the United States 33
Table 3.5 Import Dependency, Recycling Rate, and Main Import Destination of Raw 34
Materials Contained in Lithium-ion Batteries in the United States
Table 3.6 Examples of EV Battery Recycling Facilities Located in North America 34
Table 3.7 Proposed Timeline for Discussion in Assembly Bill 2832 Advisory Group 37
Table 3.8 Role of Relevant Parties in the End-of-Life Vehicles Recycling Law 38
Table 3.9 Main Contents of Interim Measures. MITT (2018) No. 43 41
Table 3.10 Information to Upload to the Traceability Management Platform 42
Table 3.11 Examples of EV Battery Recycling Facilities in China 50
Table 4.1 Example of Reused Battery Applications 60
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Table 4.2 Main Characteristics of the Examined Scenario 67
Table 4.3 Main Characteristics of the Examined Scenario 69
Table 4.4 4R Energy’s Applications of Used EV Batteries 71
Table 5.1 Recycling Target 80
x
List of Abbreviations and Acronyms
ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations

3R reduce, reuse, recycle
BEV battery electric vehicle
CO2 carbon dioxide
EAS East Asia Summit
ELV end-of-life vehicle
EPR extended producer responsibility
ERIA Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia
EU European Union
EV electric vehicle
FCV fuel cell vehicle
GW gigawatt
GWh gigawatt hour
HEV hybrid vehicle
ICE internal combustion engine
IEA International Energy Agency
IEEJ The Institute for Energy Economics, Japan
kWh kilowatt hour
LFP lithium-ion phosphate battery
LiB lithium-ion battery
MW megawatt
NEV new energy vehicle
PLDV passenger light-duty vehicle
PHEV plug-in hybrid vehicle
PV photovoltaic
R&D research and development
SNT Spiers New Technologies
US United States
VRE variable renewable energy
WEEE Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment
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Executive Summary
The main findings from the analysis are summarised below.
Chapter 1
Amongst the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, electric vehicles (EV) are
considered an important option for tackling local air pollution and enhancing energy security – away
from oil dependence and climate change mitigation. Some countries such as Indonesia and Thailand
consider EVs as the important option for developing manufacturing basis. Indonesia has laid out its
plan for developing a battery manufacturing industry with the use of local resources, while Thailand
aims to become the regional hub for the EV manufacturing industry. Each country’s current plan or
target is summarised below:
• Brunei Darussalam plans to set EV at 65% of vehicle sales by the year 2035.
• Indonesia has set a target to abandon sales of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles by
2040. Indonesia also intends for alternative vehicles to account for 20% of total vehicle
production by 2025.
• Malaysia’s Ministry of Environment and Water has outlined the electrification of the transport
system under the ‘Low Carbon Mobility Blueprint 2021–2030’. In the Blueprint, Malaysia aims
to increase the share of EV sales in passenger vehicles. The targets are 9% in 2025 and 15% in
2030.
• According to the government's Clean Energy Scenario in the Philippine Energy Plan, the
adoption of EV use is expected to reach 10% by the year 2040 in the Philippines.
• The Singapore government has announced plans to phase out petrol and diesel-fuelled
vehicles by 2040, and to switch to cleaner fuel vehicles, mainly EVs, and to expand public
charging spots from the current 1,600 to 28,000 by 2030.
• The Thai government has announced a new EV roadmap to lead the country to a hub of EVs in
ASEAN countries in 5 years. Under the roadmap, it is planned to set a target to produce 250,000
EVs and 3,000 electric public buses by 2025, and to increase EV production to 30% of total
annual automotive production or about 750,000 units out of 2.5 million units in Thailand by
2030.
• Viet Nam has no policy or goal relating to the introduction of EVs.
Chapter 2
By 2040, electrified vehicles will supply used batteries of 325 gigawatt hour (GWh) in the reference
scenario cumulatively, 778 GWh in the HEV bridge scenario, and 2,166 GWh in the battery electric
vehicle (BEV) ambitious scenario. It needs a mechanism for dealing with such a large number of
used batteries. For example, one of the methods is said to reuse them as backup battery for variable
renewable energy (VRE) power generation.
According to an analysis on ASEAN power systems (focusing on the Indochinese Peninsula and the
Malay Peninsula) by the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) (2021), it is
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estimated to need backup batteries of 500–600 GWh when VRE accounts for 40% of the generation
mix in 2040. In scenarios where vehicle electrification progress, even if all used batteries can be
reused in the power generation sector, a large number of batteries will be left over. Along with
promoting vehicle electrification, it will be necessary to consider a wide range of options for reusing
and/or recycling batteries.
Chapter 3
Approaches to the reuse of waste EV batteries differ by analysed country and region.
The European Union (EU) tries to ensure transparency in terms of the environmental performance
of batteries sold in the market – which will take a step-by-step approach to be achieved up to July
2027. For example, EVs shall have a unique ‘battery passport’ linked to the information about the
characteristics of each battery type and model providing valuable data to recyclers and second-life
companies. Batteries will have to comply with maximum carbon thresholds.
In addition, the EU tries to enforce the compliance on the recycled content of batteries. By January
2030, the recycled content thresholds are: 12% cobalt, 85% lead, 4% lithium, and 4% nickel. By 2035,
this threshold is required to be increased to 20% cobalt, 85% lead, 10% lithium, and 12% nickel.
In Japan, unique efforts are implemented by respective automobile manufacturers to establish a
traceability and/or monitoring system of the health of EV batteries. In addition, the industry group,
the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, Inc. has also launched a joint collection network.
Preparations are under way to increase the amount of reuse of EV batteries in the future. In
addition, the Council for Electrified Vehicle Society and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry,
composed of electric power companies and automobile manufacturers, formulated ‘Providing
Information Guideline of In-vehicle Battery Performance’ in June 2020, thereby clarifying specific
measurement methods.
The Chinese government enacted interim measures for reuse and recycling of new energy vehicle
batteries, including (i) the establishment of an extended producer responsibility system, (ii) the
establishment of a traceability information system, (iii) the promotion of innovation in market
mechanisms and recycling models, and (iv) the establishment of maximising benefits of
comprehensive utilisation of resources – reuse as the primary option followed by recycling.
Interim regulations on traceability management were published in accordance with the interim
measures. Firstly, the government will build a ‘traceability management platform’ under which
information on all processes of battery production, sales, use, disposal, recycling, reuse, and others
will be collected, and the status of implementation of recycling will be monitored. Furthermore,
producers of new energy vehicles are also responsible for managing traceability.
The United States (US) has not established regulations at the Federal level, while reuse and recycling
regulations for EV lithium-ion batteries operate at the state level. In California, lithium-ion batteries
are regarded as hazardous waste due to health and safety concerns, including flammability. In 2019,
the Lithium-ion Car Battery Recycling Advisory Group was setup to form policies for the recovery
and recycling of automotive lithium-ion batteries from the viewpoint of the importance of circular
economy. In Assembly Bill No. 2832, the advisory group is required to submit policy
recommendations to the legislature by 1 April 2022 with the purpose of reusing or recycling as close
to 100% of the state's lithium-ion batteries as is possible.
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Chapter 4
Understanding the health of EV batteries is the key for establishing a value chain of waste batteries.
The business practice by 4R Energy shows the interesting illustration that the health of batteries
would be monitored from the time of operation in EVs. The company’s evaluation and/or
classification depending on the quality would provide multiple reuse options from high-quality,
middle quality, and relatively low-quality options of which utilisation frequency is only for
emergency backup purpose.
The reuse of EV batteries would remain an economically viable option in future despite the
observed substantial reduction of EV batteries pack price. From 2016 to 2020, the EV batteries
average pack price has been lowered from $273 per kilowatt hour (kWh) in 2016 to $137/kWh in
2020. The IEEJ analysis shows that the new EV batteries’ pack price is projected to reach $51/kWh
with the assumption of 20% learning rate. Meanwhile, a study by Elementenergy shows that the
sales price of reused EV batteries is likely to remain lower in future compared with that of new ones.
The estimated sales price of reused EV batteries is likely to be somewhere around $35/kWh.
Caution needs to be paid in the assessment of the future sales price of EV batteries. The sales price
should depend on the quality. Currently, 4R Energy’s sales price – available from media information
– of reused EV batteries at $115/kWh is 16% lower than the global average price of new batteries
at $137/kWh, as the former includes applications requiring high performance for reuse in EVs. It
has to be also considered that the availability of waste batteries is small currently, but it is expected
to increase from 2030 to reflect the higher uptake of EVs.
The environmental benefits of EV batteries reuse would be important from policymaking purposes.
A study that compares the environmental benefits of reused EV batteries generate positive
performance for (i) energy savings, (ii) mineral resources savings, (iii) greenhouse gas emissions
reduction, and (iv) health impacts. Nevertheless, careful planning should be required because reuse
of EV batteries does not necessarily generate positive benefits if it is compared with the
replacement for grid-connected electricity supply.
It is also important to put the reuse of EV batteries in broader context to genuinely understand the
EV’s benefits on environment. For example, in terms of the magnitude of CO2 emissions reduction,
the largest contributions in future – under the decarbonised generation mix – would come from
operational stage, followed by light-weighting/sharing, which would be followed by the
contributions from reuse and/or recycling benefits. Again, policy coordination is essential to plan
for obtaining maximum environment benefits from EVs, from generation mix planning, designing,
operation, and reuse and/or recycling.
Chapter 5
Approaches to the reuse and recycling of appliances differ by analysed country and region.
The EU has required manufacturers to handle the waste appliances, of which coverage is wide to
include (i) temperature exchange equipment; (ii) screens, monitors, and equipment of which screen
surface is greater than 100 cm2; (iii), lamps; (iv) large equipment; (v) small equipment; and (vi) small
IT and telecommunications equipment.
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Despite its targets for a recycling rate at above 70%, its real implementation in many member
governments does not meet the target.
According to the survey results, consumers in the EU would rather repair their devices than replace
them; 79% think that manufactures should be legally obliged to facilitate the repair of digital
devices or the replacement of their individual parts.
To improve the recycling rate and cope with consumers’ preference on ‘right to repair’, the EU is
trying to broaden the scope of the Ecodesign Directive to include non-energy-related products. In
other words, in the notion that the products durability should be determined at design phase, the
Ecodesign Directive requires manufacturers to design energy consuming products to reduce energy
consumption at its life cycle basis. New rules on the Ecodesign Directive are expected to be in place
in 2021.
In Japan, for household appliances discarded from households, manufacturers, and others
(manufacturers and importers) are required to recycle four items of household appliances under
the Home Appliance Recycling Law and the Small Home Appliance Recycling Law. Business
operators are required to implement the reduce, reuse, recycle (3R) initiatives for 10 industries and
69 items under the Law for the Promotion of Effective Utilization of Resources.
Japan’s recycling rate for air conditioners, cathode-ray tube TVs, flat-panel TVs, refrigerators, and
washing machines has improved, and the latest data show that all of them have met the respective
target rate of 80%, 55%, 74%, 70%, and 82%. The essence of the relative successful implementation
of meeting the target is that the system is coordinated to involve manufacturers, retailers, and
designated recycling entities. Consumers bear the cost of recycling, and they can hand over waste
appliances to retailers that will send the waste to a designated recycling facility, of which
establishment and operation is handled by manufacturing companies.
In the United States, there is no federal law equivalent to the EU Waste Electrical and Electronic
Equipment (WEEE) Directive. Twenty-five states including California and others, plus Washington,
DC, have enacted and enforced their own recycling laws covering waste electronic equipment such
as televisions and computers that are discarded from homes. The first Waste Electronics Recycling
Act in the United States was enacted in California in 2003. Recyclable devices vary from state to
state, but the big five, namely TVs, desktops, laptops, monitors, and printers are targeted in many
states.
For the target entities, households and consumers are targeted in all states, but the coverage of
companies and public facilities is different. Regarding programme funds, a method of some form of
extended producer responsibility (EPR) has been adopted in states other than California, and
manufacturers are collecting and recycling targeted devices that come from general households,
small businesses, and the like, free of charge, at their own expense. Conversely, California operates
the programme at a rate paid by consumers when they purchase targeted devices.
In China, regarding the recycling of waste electronic equipment, under the Chinese version of WEEE
promulgated in 2009, the responsibilities of producers, importers, and the like are defined for 14
items of electrical and electronic equipment, such as adopting effective designs for the
comprehensive use of resources and treatment to eliminate hazards from the design stage, and for
being responsible for the disclosure of information on toxic and hazardous substances. Also, this
establishes funds to assist in the costs necessary for disposal and the collection of such costs from
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manufacturers, importers, and the like under the concept of EPR. Still further, a qualification permit
system has been created for waste electronic equipment processing companies. This defines
restrictions on the use of hazardous substances (lead, mercury, cadmium, and other substances) in
electrical and electronic equipment in the new Chinese version of the Reduction of Hazardous
Substances directive promulgated and enforced in 2016.
In China, waste electrical and electronic products are highly valued as resources, and regular
recyclers are buying them from consumers. However, because non-regular vendors that do not
bear the cost of preventing environmental pollution and damage to public health buy high-value
waste electrical and electronic products at high prices, it is assumed that an overwhelming
proportion of waste electrical and electronic products are still collected and processed through
non-regular routes.
Chapter 6
It is necessary to consider a wide range of options for reusing and/or recycling batteries. Depending
on the quality of the used batteries, they could be utilised as replacement EV batteries or for large-
scale grid storage. Other options could include residential storage, backup in factories, and street
lighting batteries.
To realise the reuse of EV batteries, the following practices need to be encouraged.
• Health and safety: Monitoring mechanisms should be in place to understand the health and
safety of EV batteries at the time of operation. This would allow the timing of replacement,
and conditions for repurposing as well.
• Technology: Research and Development (R&D) should be made to evaluate the performance
of waste batteries. The evaluation of used EV batteries is a time-consuming process, as the
performance by cell, pack, and module as a whole have to be checked. R&D should be
encouraged to develop a system as well as know-how that can shorten the required time for
evaluation.
• Regulatory: Regulatory requirements for manufacturers and owners should be clearly
formulated. It would strengthen the construction of a power battery traceability management
platform for new energy vehicles and achieve traceability of the entire life cycle of the power
battery.
• Economic: R&D should be encouraged to lower the cost of repurposing waste EV batteries.
Large-scale implementation such as grid storage using repurposed batteries, and also
identification of some small-scale projects – such as battery systems at distributed energy
systems or other purposes such as street lighting would need to be implemented
simultaneously.
• Collection System: It is important to establish a system that needs to be coordinated to involve
manufacturers, retailers, and designated recycling entities. Aside from the establishment of
traceability, it is important to establish a system that consumers and owners can access to be
involved in the value chain of EV battery reuse. Dealers should be able to play the important
role for maintenance as well as communication with consumers and owners in this regard.
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Introduction
In East Asia Summit (EAS) countries, progress has been made in recent years towards electrifying
the transport sector. Electric vehicles (EVs) are considered as important technological options for
those EAS countries towards air quality improvement in urban areas, energy security enhancement
for shifting away from oil dependence, and climate change mitigation – if these are coupled with
low-carbon power generation sources.
Some countries consider EV and battery manufacturing as opportunities for industrial development.
Amongst EAS countries, some manufacturers have started investment in or planning for domestic
battery, and/or EV production in addition to the formulation of regulations surrounding the EV
supply chain. Planning for infrastructure investment (mainly charging stations) has been under
consideration by some EAS countries.
Amongst the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, Indonesia, Malaysia, and
Thailand have formulated EV production plans, and their plans include battery production as well.
For example, Indonesia aims for establishing an integrated production system from the extraction
of cobalt (required for cathode) to battery production, while vehicle manufacturers in Thailand
have formulated plans to assemble batteries produced in other countries.
Despite the progress on the formulation of plans to manufacture EVs or batteries with the ASEAN
countries, no ASEAN member countries have yet to formulate plans or regulations on batteries
recycling.
1. Study Method
The study will conduct both quantitative and qualitative analysis as follows.
First, the study will estimate EV demand in ASEAN by 2040. With the assumptions on EV travel
distance and lifetime, the study will estimate the supply of used batteries by 2040. Building on this
estimate, the study will estimate the capacity of stationary batteries required or variable renewable
energy (VRE) by 2040.
Second, the study will conduct research on battery reuse in Europe, the United States (US), Japan,
and China in an attempt to gain insights for the formulation of regulations.
Third, the study will gain insights from those countries in Europe, the United States (US), Japan, and
China on their respective implementation of regulations for the recycling of appliances with the
analysis on (i) how those regulations are implemented, (ii) who bears the costs of recycling, and (iii)
how those regulations contributed to appliances recycling.
Fourth, the study will formulate policy recommendations for ASEAN countries to establish
regulation on batteries reuse, and to harmonise the regulations amongst member countries.
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2. Report Structure
This report is structured to analyse the potential and economic benefits and/or costs of a shift
towards EVs in ASEAN as follows.
The introduction presents the study background and objectives as well as the methodologies for
this study.
Chapter 1 presents the EV policies in ASEAN countries, including policies, targets, the current status
of EV introduction, reuse, and variable renewable energy deployment plans.
Chapter 2 presents the outlook of EV introduction in the ASEAN market, and the availability of
reusable capacity in 2040. The analysis compares the result of reusable EV batteries in 2040 with
the demand for stationary battery capacity required for flexibility adjustment in ASEAN by 2040.
Chapter 3 presents the policies and plan of reuse of EV batteries in the European Union, Japan,
China, and the US, and tries to gain insights for ASEAN countries.
Chapter 4 presents the future trajectory of the cost of reused batteries, in comparison with new
ones. The chapter also provides an analysis of environmental implications from the reuse of EV
batteries. To gain insights, the chapter also offers a case study of business practices in EV batteries
reuse.
Chapter 5 presents the policies implementation on the appliances recycling in the European Union,
Japan, China, and the US, and tries to gain insights for the creation of an EV reuse value chain.
Finally, policy implications are drawn from the above analysis.
xviii
Chapter 1
Electric Vehicle Policies in ASEAN Countries
This chapter provides an overview of electric vehicle (EV) policies in selected Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries. The chapter investigates the EV policies and targets,
the current status of EV introduction, EV reuse plans, and battery reuse policies.
1. Country Policies
1.1. Brunei Darussalam
• EV Policy and Target

The Government of Brunei Darussalam believes that EVs are a powerful means of transportation,
as they focus on short-range transportation that can be recharged relatively inexpensively with
electricity. Furthermore, according to the Brunei Darussalam National Climate Change Policy, it
plans to set EVs at 65% of vehicle sales by the year 2035. To achieve that goal, the government will
make policy decisions by controlling EV prices and expanding charging stations, including through
excise tax incentives and the like, as well as paying attention to electricity and vehicle license fees.
Still further, the Electric Vehicle Joint Task Force, composed of relevant stakeholders, was
established in 2019. It is expected to ensure the implementation of EV promotion policies. In
addition, pilot projects such as the development of charging stations are currently being
implemented through government initiatives.
• Current Status of EV introduction

There is no statistically reliable information on the number of EVs introduced into Brunei.
• EV Battery Production Plan, EV Criteria
The Government of Brunei Darussalam has not enacted a manufacturing plan for EV batteries and
EV standards.
• EV Manufacturers
No EV manufacturer has been identified in Brunei.
• Battery Reuse Plan
The Government of Brunei Darussalam has not enacted an EV battery reuse plan.
• Variable Renewable Energy (VRE) Introduction Plan

According to the National Climate Change Policy, renewable energy will account for more than 30%
of the capacity of power generation facilities by 2035, especially through the expansion of solar
power. Currently, 1.2 megawatt (MW) solar power plants are operating in Seria, Belait District
domestically, accounting for 0.14% of the country’s total power generation.
1
1.2. Indonesia
To reduce the expected potential increase in oil imports and to nurture the domestic automobile
manufacturing industry, Indonesia has set a target to abandon sales of internal combustion engine
(ICE) vehicles by 2040. Indonesia also intends for alternative vehicles to account for 20% of total
vehicle production by 2025.
As Table 1.1 shows, Indonesia is electrifying transport for both four-wheelers and two-wheelers. In
view of the continued Indonesia’s reliance on two-wheelers, the country aims to expand the stock
of electric bikes from 83,000 in 2020 to 40 million in 2040. The stock of electric cars is planned to
expand from 545 in 2020 to 13 million in 2040.
Table 1.1. Indonesia’s EV Stock Target

2020 2030 2040
Electric Cars (four-wheelers) 545 4 million 13 million
Electric Bikes (two- 83,000 16 million 40 million
wheelers)
EV = electric vehicle.
Source: Ministry of Industry and Draft of National Energy Grand Strategy.
The Indonesian government announced new local tax rates in March 2021 as shown in Table 1.2.
Table 1.2. Indonesia’s Luxury Tax on EVs, Plug-in Hybrids, and Hybrids
Previous After March 2021
Battery EVs 0% 0%
Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles 0% 5%
Hybrid Vehicles 2%–12% 6%–12%
Source: Just Auto (2021). Indonesia Offers Tax Incentives to Help Lift EV Sales.
https://www.just-auto.com/news/indonesia-offers-tax-incentives-to-help-lift-ev-sales_id200803.aspx
Indonesia has formulated Presidential Regulation, No. 55 Year 2019 Regarding Acceleration of
Battery-Based Electric Vehicle Program for Road Transportation. Aside from promoting EVs for
energy security enhancement and environmental purposes, Indonesia’s EV policy is to focus on
domestic manufacturing. Taking advantage of the essential metals availability domestically,
Indonesia aims to become the hub of EVs manufacturing.
For the purpose of providing incentives to increase the sales of domestically produced battery EVs,
Indonesia plans to increase the luxury tax on plug-in hybrid and hybrids respectively to 8% and
10%–14% according to the draft regulation of the Ministry of Finance.
2
Besides, the country has formulated the Ministerial of EMR Regulation No. 13 Year 2020 Regarding
Provision of Charging Infrastructure for Battery-based Electric Vehicles. It aims to increase the
number of charging stations from 180 in 2020 to 7,146 in 2030. As the country continues to rely on
two-wheelers, it aims to expand the number of swap battery stations that can replace drained
batteries within a few minutes. This is a convenient method as battery charging takes a few hours
at normal charging systems.
Figure 1.1. Roadmap of the Number of Swap Battery Stations in Indonesia
25,000
22,500
20,000
15,625
15,000
10,000
10,000
5,000 4,000
0
2020 2025 2030 2035
Source: Anditya C. (2020), ‘Policy, Plan, and Strategy of EV/EV Reuse in Indonesia’, Presented at ERIA Working
Group Meeting on Reuse/Recycling of EV Batteries in ASEAN, 10 December.
• Current Status of EV Introduction

Indonesia’s hybrid electric vehicle/plug-in hybrid electric vehicle HEV/PHEV sales in 2019 was 837,
and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 20 units in the same year. This represents 0.2%
of total sales of vehicles.
Faced with the pandemic, Indonesia’s vehicle sales in 2020 nearly halved from the 2019 level to
reach 532,027. The number of EV sales is not published at the time of writing, while it is evident
that EV sales were affected by the economic downturn.
Table 1.3. Number of HEV/PHEV and BEV Registrations from 2018 to 2020 in Indonesia
Total Passenger
Year HEV/PHEV BEV Total of EV
Vehicle Sales
2018 1,151,306
2019 837 20 857 1,030,000
2020 532,027
BEV = battery electric vehicle, EV=electric vehicle, HEV = hybrid electric vehicle, PHEV = plug-in hybrid electric
vehicle.
Source: GAIKINDO.
3
• EV Battery Production Plan
On 12 August 2019, Indonesia promulgated Presidential Regulation No. 55 of 2019 on the
Acceleration of Battery Electric Vehicle Program for Road Transportation (PR 55/2019).
With the issuance of PR 55/2019, the government plans to become the manufacturing hub of EVs,
taking advantage of the domestically available rare metal resources. The government is trying to
increase the local content of EV manufacturing and nurture the domestic industry.
• EV Criteria
Based on PR 55/2019, an EV is defined as a vehicle moved by an electric motor using electricity
power from a battery directly in the vehicle or from outside the vehicle.
PR 55/2019 divides EVs into two main categories:
• two-wheeled and/or three-wheeled EVs, and
• four-wheeled and/or more EVs

The presidential regulation further provides that the Minister of Industry may provide further
provision on the specifications of EVs.
There are two types of EV manufacturers acknowledged under PR 55/2019:
• EV manufacturing company (EV industry), and
• EV components manufacturing company (EV components industry).
The domestic EV producers are required to build a domestic manufacturing facility by itself or by
cooperating with another manufacturing company. In the event the EV components manufacturing
companies are not yet able to produce the main and/or the supporting components of EVs, the EV
producers may import the EV components in a completely knocked-down or incompletely knocked-
down state.
As Table 1.4 and Table 1.5 shows, the Indonesian government plans to gradually increase local
content requirement by considering the ability of the domestic production.
For two and/or three-wheeled EVs:
Table 1.4. Two- and Three-wheeled EVs in Indonesia
Year Local Content

2019–2023 Minimum 40%
2024–2025 Minimum 60%
2026 and further Minimum 80%
Source: Government of Indonesia (2019). Presidential Regulation No. 55/2019 on Acceleration of Battery
Based Electric Vehicles for Road Transportation.
4
Table 1.5. Four-wheeled and Other EVs in Indonesia
Year Local Content

2019–2021 Minimum 35%
2022–2023 Minimum 40%
2024–2029 Minimum 60%
2030 and further Minimum 80%
Source: Government of Indonesia (2019), Presidential Regulation No. 55/2019 on Acceleration of Battery
Based Electric Vehicles for Road Transportation.

Article 32 of PR 55/2019 stipulates the Indonesia’s general framework of EV batteries reuse and
recycling as follows.
− Handling of battery waste from battery-based electric vehicles (BEV) must be carried out by
recycling and/or waste management.
− Handling of battery waste is carried out by institutions, the BEV industry, and/or the domestic
BEV component industry that has a battery waste management license from a BEV that own
licenses in accordance with regulations in the field of waste management.
Despite this general framework promulgated by PR55/2019, other regulations still consider used
batteries as hazardous waste.
For example, Government Regulation No.101 Year 2014 regarding Hazardous Waste Management
listed all kinds of waste batteries as hazardous waste, and Law No. 32 Year 2009 regarding
Environmental Management prohibits the importation of hazardous waste.
Coordination is required before the domestic EV manufacturing starts at full-scale.
In view of the future expansion of used batteries, companies such as PT Indonesia Puqin Recycling
Technology plan to invest in a lithium-ion battery waste treatment plant of annual processing
capacity of 20,000 tons.
• VRE Introduction Plan

The General Plan for National Electricity (called RUKN) is prepared as the national plan for the
electricity sector in Indonesia. The latest RUKN is prepared for the time period between 2019 and
2038.
The basic idea of the RUKN is to:
− meet the realistic demand growth, address the lack of electricity supply areas, increase reserve
capacity, and to fulfil reserve margin;
− reduce oil share from energy mix;
− use more new and renewable energy sources, and
5
− utilise clean power generation technology (e.g. super critical, and carbon coal storage
technology).
In the RUKN, the government plans to increase the generation share of new and renewable sources
from 12.36% in 2019 to 23% in 2025. The progress of increasing renewables (such as hydro, solar,
wind, biomass, and other bioenergy) is slower compared with the initial target at 17.5% in 2019.
For the short term, the government has introduced renewable energy goals during the time period
between 2020 and 2024. In total, Indonesia aims to increase the renewable capacity to reach 9,051
MW in 2024. This is in line with the RUKN’s plan for meeting the 23% share of renewables by 2025.
Of the renewable energy sources, the Indonesian government is promoting solar to invest $12.5
million for the development of 800 points – on top of government buildings and public facilities –
throughout the country in 17 provinces. This is expected to expand the capacity up to 1.785 MW.
With the additional budget, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral resources expects that solar
capacity would expand to 6 MW (German-Indonesian Chamber of Industry and Commerce, 2020).
1.3. Malaysia

Malaysia’s Ministry of Environment and Water has outlined the electrification of the transport
system under the ‘Low Carbon Mobility Blueprint 2021-2030’. The blueprint entails Malaysia’s
overall strategies related to the transport sector, including fuel economy improvement, EV and low
emissions vehicle adoption, greenhouse gas emissions reduction, and modal shifts towards an
energy efficient system.
In the blueprint, Malaysia aims to increase the share of EV sales in passenger vehicles. The targets
are 9% in 2025 and 15% in 2030 (Table 1.6).
Table 1.6. Target Sales Share of EVs in Malaysia
Year 2025 2030
Passenger vehicles 9% 15%
Motorcycles 8% 15%
Buses 2,500 units 10,000 units

Source: Ministry of Environment and Water (2020).
To facilitate the sales increases, Malaysia plans to expand the number of charging systems to install
7,700 units (AC: 7,000 units, and DC: 700 units) in 2025.
The public sector will lead the EV deployment as part of public procurement. In the time period
between 2021–2022, the share of EVs in the public procurement is targeted to account for 10%,
and it is targeted to increase to 20% (2023–2025), and 50% (2026–2030). From 2025 to 2030,
Malaysia’s EV public procurement will be limited to domestic production only.
6
The blueprint includes the plan for economic incentives for BEVs and PHEVs summarised in Table
1.7.
Table 1.7. Economic Incentives for the Purchase of EVs in Malaysia
2021–2022 2023–2025 2026–2030
BEV 100% import and 50% exemption

excise duty exemption
for complete built units
(CBUs) – for the sales
of maximum 10,000
units.
PHEV 100% import and 75% exemption 50% exemption

excise duty exemption
for CBUs – for the sale
of maximum 90,000
units.
BEV = battery electric vehicle, EV = electric vehicle, PHEV = plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.
On the charging infrastructure, the Malaysian government has set a target of 7,000 AC charging
points and 500 DC charging points to be installed nationwide.
In 2020, the National Automotive Policy 2020 (NAP 2020) was officially launched. The policy aims
to develop Malaysia as a leader in the automotive manufacturing industry. NAP 2020 focuses on
next-generation vehicles, industrial evolution (IR 4.0), and mobility-as-a-service (Christopher & Ong,
2020).

The share of EVs in passenger vehicle stocks accounts for 4.1% in 2020. It is expected that the stock
share will account for 57.5% in 2035.
7
Figure 1.2. Passenger Vehicles EV Stock Share in Malaysia
• EV and Battery Production Plan

The blueprint includes an action plan for EV production as summarised in Table 1.8.
Table 1.8. Action Plan of EV Increases Specified in ‘Low Carbon Mobility Blueprint
2021–2030’ in Malaysia
Passenger vehicles Buses Motorcycles
Action Plan  EV public  Establishment of  EV public
procurement government body for procurement
 Promotion of EV EV procurement  Promotion of e-
taxis  Support for domestic motorcycles for
 Provision of production delivery business
economic incentives  Standardisation of
 Development of swap battery for e-
charging motorcycles
infrastructure  Support for domestic
 Provision of production
economic incentives
for R&D in EV
research and
support for
domestic production
 Comprehensive EV
ecosystem
development
(business
environment)
EV = electric vehicle, R&D = research and development.
8
The policy for reuse of EV batteries is under formulation.

Currently, Malaysia’s renewable share in electricity generation accounts for 2%, while the
government plans to expand the share to 20% in 2025. Photovoltaic (PV) systems are expected to
play an important role in meeting the target. Net metering is implemented in Malaysia, with rooftop
PV systems playing an important role. Also, for facilitating large-scale PV introduction, Malaysia has
implemented a large-scale solar bidding system of which first bidding took place in 2016, followed
by those implemented in 2017 and 2019.
1.4. Philippines
According to the government's Clean Energy Scenario in the Philippine Energy Plan, the adoption
of EVs is expected to reach 10% by 2040. To achieve this goal, the government has introduced
income tax exemptions for pioneering companies such as EVs, alternative fuel vehicles, charging
stations, and the like from 6 years to up to 8 years, as well as exemptions for imports of equipment,
spare parts, and consumables, under Executive Order No. 226. Furthermore, Executive Order No.
488 exempts from duty the import tariff rates of components, parts, and accessories required for
the assembly of hybrid vehicles, EVs, flexible fuel vehicles, and compressed natural gas vehicles.
Still further, EVs’ automotive tax exemption, the introduction of a 50% exemption for hybrid
vehicles, and the expansion of charging stands will also be addressed.

As of 2019, the total number of e-trikes, e-quads, e-jeeps, and other EVs (e-motorcycles, e-trucks,
and e-buses) available in the Philippines was 5002 units. This brings the total number of EVs
available to 8,682 units for the years 2020–2021. See Table 1.9 for details.
Table 1.9. Number of Electric Vehicles Registered (2019) and Market Projection
(2020–2021) in the Philippines
No. of Units per Year
Total
2019 2020 2021
E-Trikes* 4,318 1,597 1,758 7,673
E-Quads** 71 50 55 176
E-Jeeps 89 70 80 239
Other EVs (e-Motorcycles, e-
524 30 37 594
Truck, and e-Bus)
Total 5,002 1,750 1,930 8,682
*Three-wheeled vehicle assisted by motor, **Four-wheeled vehicle assisted by motor,
Source: Philippine Energy Plan.
9
The Philippine government has not enacted a manufacturing plan for EV batteries.
• EV Criteria
The Bureau of Philippine Standards of the Department of Trade and Industry has formulated the
following as standards related to EVs.
• EV safety specifications
• Fuel cells and road vehicles
• Hybrid vehicles
• Charging systems
• Lithium-ion battery packs, plugs, socket outlets, vehicle connectors, vehicle inlets
• Vehicle grid communication interface
As of 2019, 45 standards have been established.
The Philippine government has attracted 14 EV-related businesses under the Department of
Energy's Introduction of Energy Efficient Electric Vehicles (e-trike) Project, with an investment of
PhP562 million ($11.3 million) and has created approximately 1,050 direct jobs between 2013 and
2019 (Table 1.10).
Table 1.10. Electric Vehicle Companies in the Philippines
Company Name Employment

BEMAC Electric Transportation Phils, Inc. 206
Emotors, Inc. 25
Gerweiss Motor, Inc. 43
KEA Industrial Corporation 24
Pangea Phils., Inc. 175
Phil-Etro EV, Inc. 97
PhUV, Inc. 97
PinoyAko Corp. 34
Prozza Hirose Manufacturing Inc. 42
Ropali-Teco Corporation 115
Terramotors Philippines Corp. 27
Tojo Motors Corp. 41
Le’Guider International E-Trike Electronics Assembly 124
Philippines, Inc.
Total Jobs Generated 1,050
Source: Philippine Energy Plan.
10
The Philippine government has not enacted an EV battery reuse plan.

According to the Philippine government's National Renewable Energy Program, renewable energy
generation capacity is expected to reach a total of 25.27 gigawatts (GW) with an additional 15 GW
planned by 2030.
1.5. Singapore
In February 2020, the Singapore government announced plans to phase out internal combustion
engines (ICE) vehicles by 2040, to switch to cleaner fuel vehicles, mainly EVs, and to expand public
charging spots from the current 1,600 to 28,000 by 2030. In order to tackle these challenges, there
are several incentives and measures.
Firstly, the Vehicular Emissions Scheme metes out tax rebates and surcharges based on a vehicle’s
emissions levels. The scheme takes into account the emissions of five pollutants of carbon dioxide
(CO2), hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and particulate matter
(PM) and consists of five bands – A1, A2, B, C1, and C2. Depending on how many pollutant(s) the
vehicle emits, the worst performing one will determine which band the vehicle falls under. For
instance, bands A1 and B2 are the ones that give the rebate, bands C1 and C2 are the ones that
impose the surcharge. Secondly, an early adoption incentive scheme, which offers a 45% rebate on
the vehicle’s Additional Registration Fee, capped at SGD20,000 per vehicle. Thirdly, the road tax for
EVs is less punitive.
In February 2021, the government announced the Green Plan 2030, and showed more ambitious
plans to require all newly-registered cars to be cleaner-energy models from 2030, and set aside
SGD30 million over the next 5 years for related initiatives. In addition, affordability of EVs by
narrowing the cost differential between EVs and ICE vehicles will be increased.

According to the statistics from the Land Transport Agency, as of the end of 2020, the cumulative
number of EVs was 1,217 units or 0.2% of all passenger cars in the country. The lowest-priced EV
available in Singapore is priced at SGD110,000 to SGD120,000 including the certificate of
entitlement, and the purchase cost is one of the key factors of consideration for EV adoption.
Additionally, EVs’ reliance on charging stations limits long-distance driving today. For instance,
vehicle owners who frequently drive to Malaysia could find it difficult to find electrical charging
points to charge their car in Malaysia, compared to the widely available petrol stations.
• EV and Battery Production Plan

It was recently reported that Hyundai Motors will invest SGD400 million to build an innovation
centre in western Singapore. The company aims to manufacture 30,000 units of EVs a year by 2025.
Ford Motors closed its plants decades ago, effectively ending car production in Singapore, and
11
Dyson, a major vacuum cleaner manufacturer, abandoned plans to produce EVs in Singapore as it
was considered to be unprofitable.

Although it is still in the early stage on the battery reuse, some companies are starting to work on
business development. It is reported that the Singapore utilities firm, SP Group and Hyundai Motor
Group will jointly develop a new business model for the leasing of EV batteries. The new model,
named battery-as-a-service, is said to be the first in Southeast Asia, and will enable EV users to rent
the car battery instead of owning it. In addition, the global e-waste recycler, TES announced that it
is working with partners to develop energy storage systems that will use retired EV batteries to
store electricity for various commercial and residential energy needs.

Singapore is working to improve energy security by ‘decentralising energy sources’ and ‘improving
energy efficiency’ through the introduction of natural gas. Renewable energy sources such as hydro
power, geothermal, and wind power are not available due to low potentiality since Singapore has
little land and high population density. In solar power, as Singapore itself has limited land space,
there are restrictions on its spread.
Singapore’s Economic Development Authority and Public Utility Board jointly conducted the
demonstration test of large-scale floating solar power generation systems, which was the largest
scale in the world.
1.6. Thailand
In March 2020, the Thai government announced a new EV roadmap to lead the country to become
a hub of EVs in ASEAN countries in 5 years. Under the roadmap, it is planned to set a target to
produce 250,000 EVs and 3,000 electric public buses by 2025, and to increase EV production to 30%
of total annual automotive production or about 750,000 units out of 2.5 million units in Thailand by
2030.
Furthermore, the government aims to increase the adoption of EVs including hybrids (HEV) and
plug-in hybrids (PHEV), and started promoting the alternative-powertrain vehicle industry in 2017
by launching incentives for automakers and parts suppliers. Table 1.11 summarises the key
incentives. During 2018–2019, the Board of Investment approved 26 investment projects with a
total worth of $2.584 billion. The approved projects tend to be HEVs (Nissan, Honda, and Toyota)
and PHEVs (BMW and Mercedes-Benz). Only three companies (FOMM, EA Mobility, and Takano
Auto) invested in BEVs. As of December 2020, the Board of Investment announced additional
approved applications, such as Mitsubishi Motor and SAIC Motor-CP Co., Ltd, etc. Tesla EVs are not
officially sold in Thailand; however, consumers can buy Tesla EVs from local auto dealers who
normally import them from Hong Kong and the United Kingdom.
The Thai government also created technology-push policies to encourage the investment in the EV
charging station business in the country such as subsidies for charging stations, setting a temporary
12
selling price for electricity, and building an EV charging consortium. Since 2015, the number of
charging stations in Thailand has gradually increased to 647 as of November 2020.
According to IHS Markit, the demand for EVs in Thailand is to grow in the coming years, as the
government has announced plans to offer tax waivers, discounts, and partial subsidies for EV buyers
under the new roadmap. It is estimated that annual production of EVs in Thailand will increase up
to 570,500 units in 2025 and 934,200 units in 2030 respectively.
Table 1.11. Key Incentives for EVs and EV Stations of the Board of Investment in Thailand
Type of Business Incentives

Manufacture of battery electric vehicles - 8-year corporate income tax exemption,
(BEV), hybrid electric vehicles (HEV), plug-in accounting for 100% of investment (excluding
hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) cost of land and working capital)
- Exemption of import duty on machinery
- Exemption of import duty on raw or essential
materials used in manufacturing export products
for 1 year, which can be extended as deemed
appropriate by the Board
Manufacture of parts for BEVs, HEVs, PHEVs - Exemption of import duty on machinery
for one year which can be extended as deemed
appropriate by the Board
EV charging stations - 5-year corporate income tax exemption,

accounting for 100% of investment (excluding
cost of land and working capital) unless specified
in the list of activities eligible for investment
promotion that the activity shall be granted
corporate income tax exemption without being
subject to a corporate income tax exemption cap
- Exemption of import duty on machinery
for one year which can be extended as deemed
appropriate by the board
Source: Thailand Board of Investment.
13
After the launch of the EV policies, the number of EV registrations has steadily increased. Table 1.12
shows the number of HEV/PHEV and BEV registrations in Thailand. Between 2018 and 2020, the
number of HEV/PHEV registrations has increased steadily (20,334 units in 2018 and 30,676 units in
2019, and 32,264 units in 2020). Similarly, the number of registered BEVs has greatly increased from
325 units in 2018 to 2,999 units in 2020. Meanwhile, it also shows that the number of HEVs and
PHEVs outnumber that of BEVs, and the share of EVs in total automotive market has remained
sluggish.
Table 1.12. Number of HEV/PHEV and BEV Registrations from 2017 to 2020 in Thailand
Year HEV/PHEV BEV Total EV ICEV*

2018 20,344 325 20,699 2,994,326
2019 30,676 1,572 32,248 2,931291
2020 32,264 2,999 35,263 2,638,466
BEV = battery electric vehicle, HEV = hybrid electric vehicle, ICEV = internal combustion engine vehicle,
PHEV = plug-in hybrid vehicle.
Note: * The number of motorcycles is also included.
Source: Thailand Automotive Institute.

According to Kasikorn Research Center (K-Research), EVs market share in the next 5 years will
increase to one-quarter, or 240,000 units, of the total car sales nationwide. When EV production is
approaching its full capacity in 2023, it is expected that at least 260,000 units of EV batteries will be
rolled out to serve the demands in Thailand. Moreover, the prospects are bright for export-oriented
EV batteries as many automotive companies have planned to produce EVs in Thailand at a large
scale for export. Thailand can be a new production base for original equipment manufacturer
batteries for export too.

The application of battery energy storage systems in Thailand is in its infancy, and there is no official
plan and target by the government with regard to battery reuse at present. Meanwhile, EV battery
production is growing in Thailand. A leading car maker, Toyota Motor has announced that the
battery localisation will be realised by establishing an HEV battery production line in Thailand, and
showed the plan for the future regarding the management of used HEV batteries under the project
‘Hybrid Battery Life Cycle Management’ in the form of rebuild, reuse, and recycle.

On the move to reinforce electricity security, the Ministry of Energy has amended its Alternative
Energy Development Plan 2018, which covers operations from 2018 to 2037, to comply with the
national electricity generating capacity development, increasing the ratio of renewable energy
sources to 29.4 GW or 33% of the national electricity generating capacity by 2037.
14
According to the latest amendment of the Alternative Energy Development Plan 2018, electricity
generated from renewable energy sources will be introduced into the national power grid, with
solar power at 15.6 GW, biomass at 5.8 GW, wind power at 3.0 GW, hydropower from domestic
supply and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic at 3.0 GW, and waste to energy at 0.9 GW.
1.7. Viet Nam

There is no policy or goal relating to the introduction of EVs by the Vietnamese government. There
is also no tax incentive for the manufacture or introduction of EVs.

There is no statistically reliable information on the number of EVs introduced into Viet Nam.
• EV Battery Production Plan, EV Criteria

The Vietnamese government has not enacted a manufacturing plan for EV batteries and EV
standards.
Major EV manufacturers in Viet Nam include VinFast of the Vin Group, a start-up company since
2017, which mainly manufactures EVs and electric bikes. The number of units sold by the company
in 2020 is estimated to be approximately 30,000 units, including internal combustion engine
vehicles. It is expected to reach 45,000 units by 2021. In addition to automotive sales, it is also
actively involved in the development of domestic EV charging infrastructure.

The Vietnamese government has not enacted an EV battery reuse plan.

According to the Vietnamese government's 8th Power Development Plan, renewable energy will
account for 29% of the capacity of power generation facilities by 2030.
15
References
Anditya, C. (2020), ‘Policy, Plan, and Strategy of EV/EV Reuse in Indonesia’, Presented at ERIA
Working Group Meeting on Reuse/Recycling of EV Batteries in ASEAN, 10 December
Christopher & Lee Ong (2020), ‘National Automotive Policy 2020’.
German–Indonesian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (2020), ‘For Indonesia’s Renewable
Energy, Solar PV Leads the Way’. https://indonesien.ahk.de/infothek/news/news-
details/for-indonesias-renewable-energy-solar-pv-leads-the-way
16
Chapter 2
Potential of Electric Vehicle Battery Reuse in ASEAN
Countries
1. Introduction
The use of in-vehicle batteries is expected to increase with the electrification of vehicles. Conversely,
a large number of used batteries will also be generated. In this chapter, the authors use a
quantitative model to analyse how many used batteries are likely to be generated in 10 ASEAN
countries.
2. Analytical Methods
2.1. Model
The model developed by Suehiro and Purwanto (2020) is used to estimate the number of used
batteries to be generated (Figure 2.1). This model adopts a turnover model. By multiplying
powertrain sales volume for each vehicle type x each year by the survival rate, the number of units
used can be estimated for each year. This is divided into four models of passenger light-duty
vehicles (PLDV), buses, trucks, and motorbikes. It assumes six powertrains (internal combustion
engine vehicles, ICEV; hybrid electric vehicles, HEV; plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, PHEV; battery
electric vehicles, BEV; fuel cell vehicles, FCV; and natural gas vehicles, NGV). The survival rate uses
a logistic curve. The shape of the survival rate curve can be set by assuming the average service life.
In the case of PLDV, the average service life is about 15 years. Although this model is intended to
estimate fuel and power usage, in this calculation, the survival rate curve is used to estimate the
number of battery-installed vehicles that have been discarded.
17
Figure 2.1. Model Flow
Type of Powertrain
ICEV, HEV, PHEV, BEV, FCV, NGV
Socio-economic Type of Vehicle Sales Share Efficiency
Situation PLDV, Bus, Truck, Motorbike
Population Number of Number of
GDP, etc. Vehicle Sales Vehicle Sales
Number of Average
Survival rate Vehicle Stock Efficiency
50% Annual Mileage

Annual Fuel
Consumption
Type of fuel
average lifetime (year)
Oil, Electricity,
Hydrogen, CNG
BEV = battery electric vehicle, CNG = compressed natural gas, FCV = fuel cell vehicle, HEV = hybrid electric
vehicle, GDP = gross domestic product, NGV = natural gas vehicle, PHEV = plug-in hybrid vehicle, PLDV =
passenger light duty vehicle, HDV = heavy duty vehicle (bus + truck).
Source: Suehiro and Purwanto (2020).
The Suehiro and Purwanto (2020) study covers four countries: Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and
Viet Nam, so it is necessary to build models for the other six countries. Models with similar
structures are used in IEEJ (2020), and for the four countries of the Philippines, Singapore, Brunei,
and Myanmar, IEEJ models are used. For the remaining countries of the Lao People’s Democratic
Republic and Cambodia, models with similar structures were newly constructed for this analysis.
2.2. Installed Battery Settings

The installed battery capacity varies from electric vehicle to electric vehicle. Essentially, HEV driven
by the engine is relatively small because it is auxiliary equipped with a battery, and BEV driven by
the motor alone without an engine need to be equipped with a large battery. Table 2.1 shows the
assumed values of installed battery capacities used in this analysis.
18
Table 2.1. Battery Capacity of Each Powertrain (kWh)
HEV PHEV BEV
PLDV 1 9 40
HDV 2 18 66
Motor Bike 0.9
BEV = battery electric vehicle, HEV = hybrid electric vehicle, kWh = kilowatt hour, PHEV = plug-in hybrid vehicle,
PLDV = passenger light duty vehicle, HDV = heavy duty vehicle (bus + truck).
Source: Authors’ analysis.
The charging capacity of the battery gradually decreases over the time of use. In the case of
automobiles, it is said that the battery must be replaced if its power decreases by approximately
30%. Although the rate of capacity reduction will vary depending on the number of discharges and
the environment in which the battery is used (such as temperature and the like), this analysis
assumes battery replacement every 5 years. Used batteries are generated when the vehicle body
is scrapped. However, even if the vehicle is not scrapped, calculations are made to assume that
used batteries are generated every 5 years.
3. Results of Quantitative Analysis

3.1. Setting the Scenario
The number of used batteries to be generated in the future will depend on how popular and well-
received electric vehicles become. It is difficult accurately to predict the future. For that reason, this
analysis sets three scenarios relating to popularisation (Figure 2.2) and estimates the number of
used batteries to be generated. Note that the scenario covers only PLDVs and motorbikes in
accordance with Suehiro and Purwanto (2020). HDVs are excluded from the scenario.
19
Figure 2.2. Powertrain Sales Configuration by Scenario
PLDV Motorbike
100% 100%
80% 80%
Reference
60% 60%
40% 40%
20% 20%
0% 0%
2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040
100% 100%
80% 80%
HEV Bridge
60% 60%
40% 40%
20% 20%
0% 0%
2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040
100% 100%
BEV Ambitious
80% 80%
60% 60%
40% 40%
20% 20%
0% 0%
2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040
ICE HEV PHEV BEV ICE BEV
BEV = battery electric vehicle, HEV = hybrid electric vehicle, ICE = internal combustion engine, PHEV = plug-in
hybrid vehicle, PLDV = passenger light duty vehicle.
The reference scenario has the slowest rate of electrification, with a sales share of approximately
30% of electric vehicles as 2040. In PLDVs, high-cost BEVs are rarely popularised, and the
mainstream electric vehicles are HEVs. Conversely, electric bikes are likely to become popular
because they have a lower cost burden than PLDV BEVs.
The ‘BEV ambitious’ scenario sets out that BEVs will rapidly penetrate and get almost 100% market
share by 2040. This scenario is considered to be similar to the target path for some European
countries.
Meanwhile, the ‘HEV bridge’ scenario is assumed to start with low-cost HEVs, and BEVs are
gradually introduced starting after 2030 when the cost of BEVs starts to decline. Electric bike will
20
have a 100% sales share by the year 2040. Since PLDV BEV is more easily popularised, it was
assumed to be the same as ‘BEV ambitious’.
3.2. Outlook for Used Batteries to be Generated

Based on the above assumptions, the authors estimated the number of used batteries to be
generated for the entire ASEAN region by scenario.
In the reference scenario, 8 GWh of used batteries will be generated in 2030 and 53 GWh in 2040
(Figure 2.3). Cumulatively by 2040, it will be 325 GWh (Figure 2.6). Because the electrification of
automobiles has not progressed much, most of the batteries supplied are installed in motorcycles.
By country, Indonesia and the Philippines account for the majority of motorcycles.
Figure 2.3. Number of Used Batteries to be Generated (Reference)
60 53
GWh
50
40
30 26
20
8
10
1
0
2020 2025 2030 2035 2040
IDN THA MYS VNM SGP PHL MYA BRN LAO KHM
IDN = Indonesia, THA = Thailand, MYS = Malaysia, VNM = Viet Nam, SGP = Singapore, PHL = Philippines, MYA
= Myanmar, BRN = Brunei, LAO = Lao PDR, KHM = Cambodia, GWh = gigawatt hour.
In the HEV Bridge scenario, 18 GWh of used batteries will be generated in 2030 and 141 GWh in
2040 (Figure 2.4). Cumulatively by 2040, it will be 778 GWh, more than double the reference
scenario (Figure 2.6). In this scenario, all two-wheeled vehicle sales will be electric motorcycles by
2040, thereby generating a large number of used batteries. Because of the electrification of
automobiles focusing on HEVs, the capacity of the installed batteries is small and the number of
used batteries supplied is relatively small. By country, Indonesia and the Philippines account for the
majority of motorcycles.
21
Figure 2.4. Number of Used Batteries to be Generated (HEV Bridge)
160 141
GWh
140
120
100
80
57
60
40
18
20
2
0
2020 2025 2030 2035 2040
= Myanmar, BRN = Brunei, LAO = Lao PDR, KHM = Cambodia, GWh = gigawatt hour, HEV = hybrid electric
vehicle.
In the BEV ambitious scenario, 38 GWh of used batteries will be generated in 2030 and 406 GWh in
2040 (Figure 2.5). Cumulatively by 2040, it will be 2,166 GWh, roughly triple the HEV bridge scenario
(Figure 2.6). In this scenario, BEVs with large installed battery capacity will become rapidly
widespread, and therefore a large number of used batteries will be supplied. By country, Indonesia
accounts for about half of the motor vehicles and motorcycles, while Thailand, Malaysia, Viet Nam,
and the Philippines account for the majority of motorcycles.
Figure 2.5. Number of Used Batteries to be Generated (BEV Ambitious)
450
406
400
350
GWh
300
250
200 171
150
100
38
50
2
0
2020 2025 2030 2035 2040
= Myanmar, BRN = Brunei, LAO = Lao PDR, KHM = Cambodia, BEV = battery electric vehicle, GWh = gigawatt
hour.
22
Figure 2.6. Cumulative Number of Used Batteries to be Generated
(by Country/Model)
Cumulative 2020-2040 Cumulative 2020-2040

2,500 2,166 2,500 2,166
GWh
GWh
2,000
2,000
1,500
1,500
1,000 778
1,000 778
325
500 325
500
0
REF HEV BEV 0
REF HEV BEV
IDN THA MYS VNM SGP
PHL MYA BRN LAO KHM HDV Bike PLDV
= Myanmar, BRN = Brunei, LAO = Lao PDR, KHM = Cambodia, REF = Reference scenario, HEV = HEV Bridge
scenario, BEV = BEV Ambitious scenario, GWh = gigawatt hour, PLDV = passenger light-duty vehicle.
4. Conclusions
By 2040, electrified vehicles will supply used batteries of 325 GWh in the reference scenario
cumulatively, 778 GWh in the HEV bridge scenario, and 2,166GWh in the BEV ambitious scenario.
A mechanism is needed for dealing with such a large number of used batteries. For example, one
of the methods is said to reuse them as backup batteries for variable renewable energy power
generation. According to an analysis on ASEAN power systems (focusing on the Indochinese
Peninsula and the Malay Peninsula) by Matsuo and Purwanto, (2021), it is estimated to need backup
batteries of 500–600 GWh when variable renewable energy accounts for 40% of the generation mix
in 2040. In scenarios where vehicle electrification progress, even if all used batteries can be reused
in the power generation sector, a large number of batteries will be left over. Along with promoting
vehicle electrification, it will be necessary to consider a wide range of options for reusing and/or
recycling batteries.
23
Figure 2.7. Comparing Numbers of Used Batteries with Required Backup Batteries for VRE
Cumulative 2020-2040
2,500
GWh
2,000 2,166
1,500
1,000
500-600 GWh 778
500
325
0
REF HEV BEV
used battery from electrified vehicles required backup battery for VRE
REF = reference scenario, HEV = HEV bridge scenario, BEV = BEV ambitious scenario, VRE = variable renewable
energy.
Source: Authors’ analysis and Matsuo and Purwanto (2021).
24
References
Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ) (2020), IEEJ Outlook 2021.

Matsuo, Y. and A.J. Purwanto (2021), ‘Economics and Risks of Power Systems with High Shares of
Renewable Energies’. Jakarta: ERIA Research Project Report 2021, No. 13.
Suehiro, S. and A. J. Purwanto (2020), ‘The Influence on Energy and the Economy of Electrified
Vehicle Penetration in ASEAN’. Jakarta: ERIA Research Project Report 2020, No. 14.
25
Chapter 3
Electric Vehicle Battery Reuse and Recycling in Europe,
United States, Japan, and China
1. Introduction
This chapter presents the electric vehicle (EV) battery reuse and/or recycling policies of the
European Union (EU), the United States (US), Japan, and China. These are offered to draw
implications for EV battery reuse policymaking in ASEAN countries.
2. Europe
2.1. EU Directive
Since 2006, batteries and waste batteries have been regulated by the EU under the Batteries
Directive (2006/66/EC). Nevertheless, changing socio-economic conditions – presented by wider
diffusion of lithium-ion battery powered EVs and future considerations for the efficient utilisation
of rare materials such as cobalt, lithium and nickel – required the directive to be amended. The
coverage of the original directive was not integrated to consider batteries used for appliances and
vehicles.
On 10 December 2020, the European Commission published the proposal for the revision of the
Batteries Directive 2006/66/EC. The proposal was the first initiative under the EU’s Circular
Economy Action Plan that aims to achieve economic growth and resources efficiency.
The main points of the proposed amendment include the following (European Commission, 2020).
(1) Batteries on the EU market should become sustainable, high-performing and safe all along
their entire life cycle.
This requires producers to minimise the impacts on environment, and the material should be
collected in a manner that observes human rights and ecological standards. This also requires
the batteries to be repurposed, remanufactured, and recycled.
(2) Mandatory requirements
The Commission proposes the use of responsibly sourced materials, with restricted use of
hazardous substances, minimum content of recycled materials, carbon footprint, performance
and durability and labelling. The Commission also requires meeting of the collection targets,
and recycling targets.
(3) Minimise environmental impact
The proposal aims to establish the battery value chains in order to minimise the environmental
impact. In this end, the proposal includes that only stationary and mobile batteries with the
carbon footprint label can be sold to the market.
26
2.2. Current Status
At present, only a limited number of EVs are available for repurposing in the EU. It is pointed out
that the number of lithium-ion batteries becoming available annually for remanufacturing, recycling
and repurposing will reach 3 million units between 2029 and 2032 (Foster et al., 2014).
In view of the future potential availability of batteries for repurposing, a number of trial cases are
implemented in European countries as below.
• Case 1: Renault
Renault offers leasing scheme called ‘RECHARGE’, under which manufacturers retain the ownership
of the batteries while consumers purchase the vehicle. The leasing scheme provides consumers
with the ability to pay the monthly price of battery usage depending on the travel distance. This
scheme allows Renault the control over the timing of repair or replacement of batteries. And in the
case of replacement, Renault can decide whether the replaced batteries could be reused,
repurposed, or recycled.
• Case 2: Daimler, The Mobility House, GETEC, and REMONDIS (Mobility House, 2016)..
A battery storage project of 13 megawatt hours (MWh) is implemented in Lünen, Germany. The
used EV batteries are repurposed as the option for power grid stability. The project is implemented
by Daimler, The Mobility House, GETEC, and REMONDIS. A total of 1,000 battery systems from
second-generation EVs are utilised for this purpose.
• Case 3: 2BCycled Project (EOL–IS, 2014)
A research project is implemented to evaluate the viability of second life of EV batteries. The project
aims to investigate the economic performance of stationary usage of batteries from hybrid vehicles
and battery electric vehicles for the residential households that own photovoltaic (PV) systems in
the Netherlands.
• Case 4: Vattenfall, BMW, and Bosch (Greencar Congress, 2016)

Vattenfall, BMW, and Bosch are testing the second-life EV batteries in Hamburg, Germany. The
project has transformed the batteries from 100 EVs into stationary facility that comprises 2600
modules. The storage is intended to be sold to the primary control reserves by Vattenfall.
2.3. Issues and Hurdles

A study implemented by Hill et al. (2019) points out several issues and hurdles for the purpose of
developing value chain of battery reuse. As Table 3.1 shows, the study evaluated the EU’s
performance on the creation of an EV battery value chain. The study identified the constraint on
the access to raw materials, meanwhile it is recognised that recycling will play the important role
in alleviating the constraint.
The study also identifies the emerging growth of industry related to battery cell manufacturing,
reuse, and repurposing.
27
Table 3.1. Summary of SWOT Analysis for the EV Battery Value Chain in
the European Union
EV battery Value Chain Industry Infrastructure Policy
Raw materials Weak Intermediate Strong
Cell component Intermediate Intermediate Strong
manufacturing
Cell manufacturing Intermediate Intermediate Intermediate
Battery pack manufacturing Strong Strong Strong
EV manufacturing Strong Strong Strong
Re-use Intermediate Intermediate Weak
Re-purposing Intermediate Intermediate Weak
Recycling Strong Strong Strong
Note: Green: key strengths that future policy should continue to reinforce and support; Amber: development
areas that should be monitored; and Red: key barriers or constraints that future policy should look to ease.
Source: Hill et al. (2019).
Other hurdles include:

• Health and safety: Some concerns are expressed over the use of repurposed EV batteries on
the potential of fire safety, and/or environmental impacts.
• Regulatory: The transportation of used EV batteries requires regulatory transparency that it
should not be classified as hazardous waste.
• Economic: Repurposing a battery safely in the manner that meets required standards result in
high manufacturing costs, while low-cost alternatives may become suitable for energy storage
solutions.
• Technical: In relation to health and safety, some technical concerns and reduced lifetime of
used batteries offer a big challenge.
2.4. Future Direction

Under the revised EU Batteries Directive various new undertakings will be held to assist the creation
of a value chain of used batteries in the EU market. Table 3.2 includes the time schedule specified
in the revised directive. The EU tries to ensure transparency in terms of the environmental
performance of the batteries sold in the market – which will take a step-by-step approach to be
achieved through July 2027. In addition, the EU tries to enforce the compliance on the recycled
content of batteries. By January 2030, the recycled content thresholds are 12% cobalt, 85% lead,
4% lithium, and 4% nickel. By 2035, this threshold is required to be increased t0 20% cobalt, 85%
lead, 10% lithium, and 12% nickel.
28
Table 3.2. Overview of the Future Implementation Plan of EV Batteries Reuse and Recycling in
the European Union
Time Implementation
July 2024 A carbon footprint declaration will be required.
January 2026 Each industrial battery and electric vehicle battery with a capacity higher
than 2 kWh shall have a unique ‘battery passport’ linked to the
information about the characteristics of each battery type and model
providing valuable data to recyclers and second-life companies. An
electronic exchange system in the form of an online battery database
has also been proposed to complement the passport.
January 2026 These batteries must have a carbon intensity performance class label
the details of which are yet to be communicated.
July 2027 Batteries will have to comply with maximum carbon thresholds that
have yet to be stated.
January 2030 These batteries will have to comply with minimum recycled content
thresholds (12% cobalt, 85% lead, 4% lithium, 4% nickel).
January 2035 These thresholds will be further increased (20% cobalt, 85% lead, 10%
lithium, 12% nickel).
EV = electric vehicle, kWh = kilowatt hour.
Source: European Commission (2020).
A study by Abdelbaky et al. (2020) estimates the EU’s future potential for EV batteries recycling.
The study analysed the usable batteries amount from plug-in passenger and light commercial
electric vehicles in the EU for both plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and full battery electric vehicles (BEV).
The study focused on lithium-ion batteries only, and nickel metal hydride batteries, which are more
suited for hybrid electric vehicles, are excluded.
Three scenarios developed in this study are:
• Recycling scenario – This scenario is characterised by rapid growth of waste batteries for
recycling. Under this scenario, high learning curves for EV batteries.
• Baseline scenario – This scenario is in line with the most outlook studies, and expert views on
exploiting full battery potentials in EV use.
• Repurpose scenario – This scenario assumes the longest lifetime and slower growth rate of
waste batteries.
All three scenarios project higher availability of waste from EVs after 2030. Annual recycling
capacity of 12 gigawatt hour (GWh) (18 kiloton/year), and 138 GWh (150 kiloton/year) are needed
for 2030 and 2040, respectively.
29
3. United States
3.1. Regulations
• Vehicle Regulations
Since the 1970s, through the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards, the federal government
has imposed obligations on automobile manufacturers and importers to achieve average fuel
consumption standards for passenger cars and small trucks to improve fuel consumption for
automobiles. In addition, since 2010, a tax credit of $2,500–$7,500 has been established for each
purchase of an electric vehicle. The deduction is based on battery capacity and vehicle weight, and
will be phased out after sales of 200,000 units per automobile manufacturer (US Department of
Energy, n.d.)
In September 2019, the former Trump administration announced the One National Program Rule,
which revoked the exception that allowed California to set its own emissions regulations and
centralised standard-setting authority to the federal government. Also in March 2020, the final
rules of the Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient Vehicle Regulations, which provided for a significant
relaxation of the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards set in 2012 during the Obama
administration, were announced. However, the Trump administration's policies led to litigation by
a coalition of states, including California (Grandoni and Eilperin, 2019). California is also the largest
automotive market in the United States, with automobile manufacturers split between federal
support (General Motors, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Toyota, and others) and state support (Honda,
Ford, BMW, VW/Audi, and Volvo) (Shepardson, 2019).
In January 2021, President Biden signed an executive order requesting a review of federal rules and
regulations issued under the pre-Trump administration. This also includes the above-mentioned
automotive fuel consumption regulations.
• Vehicle Recycling Regulations

In the United States, there is no federal law governing the recycling of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs).
They are governed by a voluntary system under a market economy. Automotive recycling is
promoted by automotive manufacturers and industry associations such as the Automotive
Recyclers Association and the like, with more than 95% of ELVs entering recycling routes, 80% of
the materials from them is recycled. Whether there is any economic benefit is an important issue
for the scrapper to determine whether to recycle, and this trend is significant in the United States.
Conversely, since hazardous substances such as heavy metals are handled in the automotive
recycling business, strict monitoring is implemented in accordance with environment-related laws
and ordinances such as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Clean Air Act, the Clean
Water Act, and others.
• EV Battery Reuse and Recycling Regulations
At the federal level, the Federal Mercury-Containing and Rechargeable Battery Management Act
(Battery Act) defines the proper disposal of batteries containing hazardous materials such as
mercury, cadmium, and lead, but it does not cover lithium-ion batteries. At the federal level,
lithium-ion batteries are not clearly considered hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation
and Recovery Act. Reuse and recycling regulations for EV lithium-ion batteries operate at the state
30
level, and California, New York, and Minnesota are the only states that prohibit landfill disposal of
lithium-ion batteries (Gaines, Ritcha, and Spangenberger, 2018).
In California, lithium-ion batteries are regarded as hazardous waste due to health and safety
concerns, including flammability. In 2019, the Lithium-ion Car Battery Recycling Advisory Group was
setup to form policies for the recovery and recycling of automotive lithium-ion batteries from the
viewpoint of the importance of the circular economy. In Assembly Bill No. 2832, the Advisory Group
is required to submit policy recommendations to the legislature by 1 April 2022 with the purpose
of reusing or recycling as close to 100% of the state's lithium-ion batteries as is possible (CalEPA
n.d).
3.2. Current Status

• EV and EV Battery Industry
Figure 3.1 shows the change in sales of EVs (PHEVs + BEVs) in the United States. The number of EVs
sold in 2019 was 327,000 units, accounting for 2.1% of new car sales. The number of EVs sold in
2020 showed a significant increase of 43% over the previous year worldwide (mainly driven by
Europe), while the United States remained at 4% (Shahan, 2021).
The share of EV sales in the United States is low compared to Europe and China. Challenges include
inadequate charging infrastructure, consumer preferences for larger cars, and a lack of clear
policies.
Figure 3.1. Sales of PHEVs and BEVs in the United States
400
350
1,000 Units
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
BEV = battery electric vehicle, PHEV = plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.

Source: IEA (2020).
With regard to the EV battery industry, as of 2019, the United States had eight manufacturing plants
including Tesla's Giga Factory, with manufacturing capacity ranking second in the world to China
(China: 236 GWh, United States: 35 GWh) (BNEF, 2019), but overseas capital in Japan (Panasonic)
and the Republic of Korea (LG Chem, SK innovation, and others) is responsible for this.
31
• EV Battery Reuse Industry
Pilot projects such as those shown in Table 3.3 have been implemented in the United States for the
reuse of EV batteries.
In 2016, a project implemented by UC Davis with funding from the California Energy Commission
achieved a peak cut in power consumption for the UC Davis Robert Mondavi Institute, a winery, a
brewery, and a food processing complex. In this project, a 300 kWh energy storage system
composed of 18 reused Nissan LEAF battery packs was built inside a transport container to store
surplus power of 200 kW PV installed on the rooftop of the facility during the day and to discharge
it in the evening, thereby reducing the energy usage of the facility by more than 20% (Feller, 2019;
Ambrose, 2020).
In June 2019, EV start-up Rivian, which is working to develop electric pickups, announced plans to
convert spent EV batteries into an energy storage system for Puerto Rico's solar microgrid. They
build a 135 kW system using battery packs for development vehicles in Adjuntas, a city in Puerto
Rico that was damaged by a hurricane in 2017. In normal times, it is used to reduce electricity
charges, and in the event of power outages, it serves to supply power to core businesses. According
to an announcement by Rivian, Puerto Rico's commercial energy costs are twice as high as the US
average, so this is a good start for the project (Krok, 2019).
Table 3.3. Overview of the EV Reuse Pilot Projects in the United States
Lead Entity Location Year(s) Capacity
UC Davis, California Energy 260 kWh (864 LEAF modules, 100
Davis, CA 2016
Commission, Nissan kW PV)
BMW, EVgo Los Angeles, CA 2018 30 kW, 44 kWh (2 i3 packs)
2014– 108 kW, 180 kWh (unspecified
UC San Diego, BMW, EVgo San Diego, CA
2017 number of mini E packs)
25 kW, 50 kWh (5 volt packs, 74
General Motors, ABB San Francisco, CA 2012
kW PV, 2 kW wind turbines)
Yellowstone
Toyota 2014 85 kWh (208 Camry modules)
National Park
200 kW (unspecified number of
Nuvve, University of
Newark 2019 mini E packs, integrated with
Delaware, BMW
V2G in addition)
Adjuntas, Puerto 2020 135 kW (battery packs from its
Rivian
Rico (plan) development vehicles)
CA = California, kW = kilowatt, kWh= kilowatt hour, PV = photovoltaic.
Sources: Krok (2019), Ambrose (2020).
Spiers New Technologies (SNT) is the largest in the United States as an operator for the reuse of EV
batteries. Founded in 2014, SNT deploys repair, re-manufacturing, refurbishing, and repurposing
(4R) services for EV batteries, providing one-stop life cycle management of EV batteries. Most of
32
the battery packs accepted by SNT come from dealer replacements during the warranty period and
testing projects. The accepted battery packs go either through screening and are returned to the
EV for replacement during the warranty period, repurposed for other applications, or their
materials are recycled. In the first quarter of 2019, 2,000–2,500 battery packs were received per
month. SNT is located in Oklahoma City, the geographic centre of the United States, so it can ship
to almost any dealer in North America within 24 hours. SNT also built a battery software platform
called ALFRED. The system accepts data from various sources, including manufacturers, dealers,
and carriers, and collects, manages, and processes battery-related information (Spiers New
Technologies; Kelleher Environmental, 2019).
Conversely, California-based start-up companies such as RePurpose Energy, Smartville Energy,
ReJoule, and others are also developing unique reuse businesses with California Energy Commission
support (Table 3.4).
Table 3.4. Overview of the EV Reuse Start-up Companies in the United States
Company Name Overview
RePurpose Energy Led by Professor Jae Wan Park, University of California, Davis
Developed a way to shorten the process of testing battery
degradation, which traditionally took 1 day, to approximately 1
minute.
Smartville Energy Spin out from the University of California, San Diego Energy
Research Center. Developed a refurbishing process that supports a
variety of batteries.
ReJoule Adopted an approach that optimises the secondary life battery that
starts inside the vehicle.
Source: Pyper (2020).
• EV Battery Recycling Industry

Table 3.5 shows the import dependency, recycling rate, and main import destination of the raw
materials contained in lithium-ion batteries (LiB) in the United States. These substances tend to
have mining quantities and refining capacity biased towards specific countries, and the United
States also relies on imports for more than half of its domestic consumption. Especially for cobalt,
mining is done in Congo, refining is highly dependent on China; geopolitical risks are high. The
demand for nickel is mostly for stainless steel manufacturing, and the like, but higher quality nickel
is needed for EV batteries. Expansion of the supply system is required to keep pace with future
demand growth (WEF, 2019).
33
Table 3.5. Import Dependency, Recycling Rate, and Main Import Destination of Raw Materials
Contained in Lithium-ion Batteries in United States
Net Import Recycling Rate,
Material Main Import Sources, 2016–2019
Reliance, 2020 2020
Cobalt contained in metal, oxide, and
Cobalt 76% 29% salts: Norway, 20%; Canada, 14%;
Japan, 13%
Lithium >50% -1)
Argentina, 55%; Chile, 36%; China, 5%
Nickel contained in ferronickel, metal,
Nickel 50% 50% oxides, and salt: Canada, 42%; Norway,
10%; Finland, 9%
Manganese ore: Gabon, 69%; South
Manganese 100% -2)
Africa, 17%; Mexico, 8%
Graphite
100% -3) China, 33%; Mexico, 23%; Canada, 17%
(Natural)
Notes: 1) One domestic company has recycled lithium metal and lithium-ion batteries since 1992 at its facility
in British Columbia, Canada. In 2015, the company began operating the first US recycling facility for lithium-
ion vehicle batteries in Lancaster, Ohio. Seven other companies located in Canada and the United States have
begun recycling or intend to begin recycling lithium metal and lithium-ion batteries to some degree.
2)
Manganese was recycled incidentally as a constituent of ferrous and nonferrous scrap; however, scrap
recovery specifically for manganese was negligible. Manganese is recovered along with iron from steel slag.
3)
The abundance of graphite in the world market inhibits increased recycling efforts. Information on the
quantity and value of recycled graphite is not available.
Source: USGS (2021).
Table 3.6 shows an example of an EV battery recycling facility located in North America. The centre
of EV battery recycling is in China and South Korea, and the recycling capacity of EV batteries in
North America is currently limited.
Founded in 1992, Retriev Technologies is one of the largest battery recycling companies in North
America, accepting all batteries for domestic, industrial, and EV use and collecting and selling
valuable metals. They also have the technology and expertise to recycle all commercially available
LiBs, including those for EVs. In February 2021, they announced the signing of a strategic
partnership with the Japanese trading company Marubeni (Retriev Technologies; Marubeni, 2021).
Table 3.6. Examples of EV Battery Recycling Facilities Located in North America

Capacity
Company TRL level Country Technology
(tonnes)
Lithion Commercial Canada Mechanical 2,500
Li-cycle Pilot Canada Mechanical 7,500
Retriev Technologies Pilot United States Mechanical 4,500
TRL = technology readiness level.
Sources: IEA (2020) created by Pinegar and Smith (2019) and Eduljee and Harrison (2020).
Trends in start-ups are also notable in the recycling sector. Founded in 2016, Canada's LiB recycling
company, Li-Cycle, has plans to invest $175 million to build North America's largest LiB recycling
34
plant in New York. The plant's processing capacity will eventually reach 25,000 tonnes, recovering
more than 95% of cobalt, nickel, lithium, and other valuable elements. Construction of the facility
is scheduled to commence sometime in 2021 (Kumagai, 2021).
Redwood Materials is a start-up company co-founded in 2017 by former Tesla CTO J.B. Straubel to
recycle batteries for EVs and home appliances. The company became one of the first five investors
in Amazon's $2 billion Climate Pledge Fund (Kumagai, 2021).
The United States Department of Energy is supporting research and development with the goal of
increasing the recycling rate of LiB, which currently stands at less than 5%, to 90%. In 2019, the US
Department of Energy established ReCell Center, a consortium of labs specialising in the
development of safe and cost-effective battery recycling, to provide a $15 million grant over 3 years.
Under ReCell, national laboratories, scholars, and industry will work together to develop an
innovative approach to building a closed-loop battery industry. This research centre focuses on the
longer-term, promising technologies such as direct cathode recycling (Kumagai, 2021; US
Department of Energy, 2019).

Barriers to recycling and reuse were identified in materials submitted (CalEPA, 2019) at the first
meeting of the California Advisory Group, as follows. Challenges include a lack of standardisation
for reuse, small scale and a poor economy for recycling. For reuse, it is also a challenge to have
different degrees of degradation of individual batteries. For this reason, Tesla is said to be negative
towards the reuse for applications where high reliability is required. Instead, it is looking for
directions to extract raw materials for recycling (Slattery, Clark, and Scheff, 2019).
Barriers to Recycling
• Recycling not cost-feasible at scale

• Difficult to recover all materials in the battery – currently research and pilot projects to
improve methods and increase recovery
• Lack of battery pack standardisation, different chemistries, and cell structure make recycling
hand to automate, requires costly manual disassembly
• Battery chemistry likely to change significantly in next decade. Potential changes are low cobalt
or cobalt free cathodes (with higher nickel content), which makes recycling even less profitable
to recycle since cobalt is the most profitable recovered product
• Collection and subsequent transportation to recycling facility difficult and costly
Barriers to Reuse
• Lack of batteries standardisation; no standard way to test battery life

• Performance inconsistency for batteries that are old and outdated technologies
• Not included in the European Union Batteries Directive, once batteries certified as waste,
cannot be put back into circulation without auditable trail of tests
Battery demand in the United States is expected to grow not only from EVs, but also from the
perspective of grid management as renewable energy expands. Conversely, the US does not have
a domestic battery supply chain. Mineral resources required for LiB production are import-
35
dependent. Japanese and Korean manufacturers are also responsible for domestic battery
production. The United States is looking at increasing battery demand, reducing mineral resource
import dependency, and creating employment through in-house production in the future, and is
considering building a supply chain that includes domestic mineral resource development. Reuse
and recycling of EV batteries can also be positioned in this context.
• Estimation of Supply and Demand of Second Life Batteries

Worldwide, the supply of reusable LiB is currently extremely limited, and the gap between supply
and demand is expected to remain large in the short to medium term. One estimation shows that
energy storage systems in the United States will reach 75 GWh, while reusable EV batteries supply
will be less than 5 GWh in 2030 (Melin, 2018).
• Federal Policy Direction

The Biden administration intends actively to promote an EV policy and will promote EV replacement
by installing more than 500,000 charging stations and offering tax credits for consumers.
Furthermore, it is assumed that it will create 1 million new jobs in the automotive industry in the
United States (Joe Biden).
In April 2021, an infrastructure investment plan named the American Jobs Plan was announced. In
this plan, noting that the size of the US market for EVs is one-third that of the Chinese market, the
Biden administration aims to make EVs affordable for all households by investing $174 billion in the
EV market, by building a domestic supply chain and creating jobs (White House, 2021).
Regarding battery reuse and recycling, in March 2021, Senator Angus King, a founding member of
the bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus, announced the Battery and Critical Mineral Recycling Act
of 2020. The bill calls for the spending of $150 million over the next 5 years to support innovative
research on recycling and to establish battery recovery systems across the United States (King,
2020).
Conversely, as mentioned in section 3.1, California is currently considering specific policies related
to the reuse and recycling of EV batteries. In the United States, state autonomy is strong, and the
specific enforcement of waste and recycling regulations is delegated to state governments. The
following section introduces future policy trends in California.
• State Policy Direction

The Advisory Group based on Assembly Bill No. 2832 in California has held eight meetings as of the
end of March 2021. At its sixth meeting on 14 December 2020, it was indicated that three subgroups
for reuse, recycling, and logistics would be established within the Advisory Group as future work
plans, and that the review work would be implemented according to the timeline shown in Table
3.7. Phase 1 will discuss the identification of barriers and opportunities, and Phase 2 will discuss the
means to address those barriers. California is forging ahead of the federal government and other
states to consider reuse and recycle policies for EV batteries. For that reason, it is necessary to keep
an eye on future trends in California.
36
Table 3.7. Proposed Timeline for Discussion in Assembly Bill 2832 Advisory Group
Phase Goal
Phase I: 1. Get a complete understanding of laws as they
Identification of barriers and currently stand. What is allowed and what isn’t
opportunities (January–March allowed in California?
2021) 2. Based on federal and state laws, what kind of
programme do we want to be able to do in California?
Do we want reuse and recycling to occur in California?
If so, what are the barriers to get that in place?
3. What is the capacity that is required? When do we
anticipate the recycling need to be built? Or the
potential capacity to get us to 100% reuse and
recycling?
Phase II: 1. Options to address barriers and incentivise the reuse
Options to Address Barriers of batteries with a sufficient state of health
(March–July 2021) 2. Options to address barriers and incentivise recycling
that minimises environmental and economic cost
while recovering key materials
3. Options to address barriers and facilitate safe and
efficient logistics to support the reuse and recycling
Phase III: 31 December 2021: Complete draft of final report
Compile and Complete Draft of
Final Report (July–December 2021)
Phase IV: 1 March 2022: Complete final report
Edit and Finalise Final Report
(December 2021–March 2022)
Source: CalEPA (2020).
4. Japan
4.2. Regulations
In Japan, the Act on Recycling, etc. of End-of-Life Vehicles (End-of-Life Vehicles Recycling Law),
which came into effect in January 2005, has established a legal system for recycling fluorocarbons,
airbags, and shredder dust generated from used vehicles. A system has been established whereby
the owner of a vehicle pays a prescribed recycling fee when they purchase a new vehicle, and when
they scrap the vehicle, the automobile manufacturer takes back the automobile they manufactured
and recycles it directly or through a collection agency or scrapper or the like as shown in Table 3.8.
However, batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) are not covered by the End-of-Life Vehicles Recycling
Law. A system has been established whereby each automobile manufacturer voluntarily collects
them free of charge when scrapping the vehicle in accordance with the Waste Management and
Public Cleansing Act (Waste Management Law). However, there are also cases in which batteries
removed from EVs by scrappers or the like are resold to third parties.
37
Table 3.8. Role of Relevant Parties in the End-of-Life Vehicles Recycling Law
Vehicle Owner Payment of Recycling Fees and Delivery of Scrapped Cars to

(End Owner) Collection Agent Registered with the Municipality
Relevant Vendor • Collects scrapped vehicles from end owner and hands them over to
• Collection Agent the scrapper.
• Scrapper • Properly collects scrapped cars according to standards and delivers
them to automobile manufacturers.
Automobile When a vehicle manufactured by the manufacturer is scrapped,
Manufacturers shredder dust, airbags, and fluorocarbons generated from the car are
collected and recycled.
Source: Author‘s summary based on Ministry of Environment, Japan.
4.2. Current Status

Regarding the collection of EV batteries, in addition to the unique efforts of automobile
manufacturers, the industry group, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, Inc., has also
launched a joint collection network. Preparations are under way to increase the amount of reuse
of EV batteries in the future. Furthermore, since most of the recovered EV batteries maintain a
storage capacity of about 70% compared to new ones, in addition to the technical developments in
recycling that remove rare earth raw materials such as cobalt, nickel, lithium, and the like, efforts
such as technical verification and demonstration projects to reuse recovered batteries are also
underway. Depending on the status of deterioration of recovered batteries, there are cases where
the batteries are reused as it is. Some are dismantled, reassembled, and reused. In addition to being
reused as an EV battery, other uses are anticipated, such use as a stationary battery, as a power
source for adjusting power supply and demand and frequency fluctuations, and as a power storage
system combined with variable renewable energy such as solar power generation and the like.
Figure 3.2. Reuse and Recycling of Battery in Japan
Source: The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (2021).
38
When judging the application of reuse of EV batteries, it is important to understand the status of
deterioration of the batteries. To do so, it is essential to establish a battery-performance evaluation
technology. Therefore, companies are working on the development of technologies quickly and
accurately to measure the performance of used batteries and to predict the status of their
deterioration when reused. In addition, the Council for Electrified Vehicle Society and the Ministry
of Economy, Trade and Industry, composed of electric power companies and automobile
manufacturers, formulated ‘Providing Information Guideline of In-vehicle Battery Performance’ in
June 2020, thereby clarifying specific measurement methods.

Battery deterioration conditions vary greatly depending on cell shape, electrode material, vehicle
type, and other factors. Opinions have emerged that standardisation of the battery itself is also
necessary from the viewpoint of streamlining performance evaluation. However, for automobile
manufacturers, the design of the battery is also something that leads to product differentiation,
and the reality is that it is not easy to attain standardisation. Furthermore, standard settings based
on deterioration conditions, residual value levels, and the like are also necessary. In addition,
ensuring safety during reuse, organising the concept of product responsibility (the responsibility
when disassembling batteries into modular units and then reusing them, sharing responsibility
between asset holders and battery operators, and the like), and improving logistics efficiency to
reduce battery recovery costs are also important issues.

With a view to attaining carbon neutrality set by the Government of Japan by 2050, the
decarbonisation of the power sector is accelerating, and the introduction and expansion of solar
and wind power generation, as well as the spread of stationary power storage systems are expected
to expand. There is also a great possibility that stationary power storage systems utilising used EV
batteries will be introduced. In addition to clearing technical challenges for the introduction and
expansion of that, it is also necessary to be cost competitive for new battery-based power storage
systems. Continuous efforts by companies to improve the efficiency of battery reuse supply chains
and to reduce costs are essential. However, policy support by the government will also be necessary
to prevent the illegal disposal of used EV batteries and to aim for a resource-cycling society.
The legal system related to EV batteries is also expected to continue to be studied in the future,
but the European Commission (EU) announced a proposal to amend the regulation on batteries in
December 2020, adding manufacturers' responsibilities (Extended Producer Responsibility) such as
declaring carbon footprints throughout the battery life cycle, the obligation to collect batteries as
a measure to promote a recycling society, and the practical application of a battery passport to
create a battery database to improve traceability. These are expected to be studied based on these
trends.
From the viewpoint of responding to the performance and safety evaluation of reused batteries,
in April 2020, Japan took the lead in issuing the world’s first international standard on the safety of
large stationary battery systems from the International Electrotechnical Commission (METI, 2020a).
It is also considering international standardisation such as product standards for reuse for
stationary and management system standards and others.
39
5. China
5.1. Regulations
• Vehicle Regulations
China's new energy vehicle (NEV = BEV + PHEV + FCEV) market developed rapidly from the mid-
2010s because of preferential and regulatory policies of the central government. For the demand
side, the NEV industry has been promoted by subsidisation policies for individuals purchasing an
NEV, policies by local governments such as license plate regulations and the like, and for the supply
side by NEV regulations and Corporate Average Fuel Consumption regulations (Figure 3.3).
Figure 3.3. Overview of NEV Policies in China
NEV Sales Target: Approx. 20% by 2025
<Supply Side> <Demand Side>
NEV Regulations Subsidies

Request automobile The amount provided depends on
manufacturers to sell NEV at a cruising distance, efficiency, and
certain ratio or higher. Targets energy density of the battery
are measured with NEV credits; pack. Originally scheduled to
inter-company transactions are close in 2020; was extended to
possible. Regulation will be 2022 while gradually reducing the
strengthened after 2021. payment amount.
CAFC Regulations Local Government Policies

Request automobile More than 29 provinces and cities
manufacturers to attain provide incentives to NEV
corporate average fuel purchasers for easy access to
consumption standards. Inter- license plates, exemption from
company credit transactions are traffic restrictions, and reduced
possible; NEV credits can be parking fees and others.
converted.
CAFC = Corporate Average Fuel Consumption, NEV = new energy vehicle.

Source: Created by IEEJ based on METI (2020b) and IEA (2020).
Subsidies that have played a major role in the popularisation of NEVs are scheduled to end in 2022.
The subsidy policy was originally scheduled to close in 2020. However, it was extended to 2022
because of the stagnation in NEV sales in 2019 and it was announced that the payment rate would
be reduced by 10% in 2020, 20% in 2021, and 30% in 2022 compared to the previous year (State
Council, 2020).
40
• Vehicle Recycling Regulations
When disposing of automobiles, the law on ELV recycling, which came into force in 2001, applies.
Although the main purpose of this law was to regulate automobile reassembling plants, in fact, the
automobile reassembling market already existed and there was a need for second-hand parts.
Therefore, deregulation was implemented in 2011 and 2019, when it became possible to sell to
companies with the ability to re-manufacture if the conditions for re-manufacture were met (IEA,
2020).
In 2006, the Automotive Products Recycling Technology Policy, an instructive document, was
implemented for the recycling of automobiles. The purpose of this document is to promote the
development of automotive product waste collection work by automotive production, sales, and
related companies. The recyclable rate target of automobiles is approximately 85% in 2010 (of
which 80% or more is for material recycling), approximately 90% in 2012 (of which 80% or more is
for material recycling), and approximately 95% in 2017 (of which 85% or more is for material
recycling). Conversely, with regard to the actual status of ELV collection, there is a deviation
between the number of scrapped vehicles registered for disposal and the number recovered by the
collection and scrapper business operators. It is believed that the majority has flowed to
unauthorised, illegal vendors. One of the possible reasons for this is the higher ELV purchase prices
by illegal vendors due to the illegal sale of the parts (METI, 2011).
• EV Battery Reuse and Recycling Regulations

With the popularisation of NEVs, there is an urgent need to consider the handling of discarded
batteries that are expected to be emitted in the future. According to Chinese government estimates,
by the end of 2017, more than 1.8 million NEV units had been deployed, and they contained
approximately 86.9 GWh of batteries, exceeding more than 200,000 tons (24.6 GWh).
With this as a background, in 2018, the Chinese government enacted interim measures for reuse
and recycling of NEV batteries (State Council, 2018). Table 3.9 shows the main contents of these
measures. Also, LiB and nickel-hydrogen batteries are targeted for power batteries in this measure,
and lead batteries are not targeted.
Table 3.9. Main Contents of Interim Measures, MIIT (2018) No. 43

Item Content
Establishment of an extended producer NEV manufacturers are primarily responsible
responsibility system for recycling batteries.
Execution of product lifecycle management Affiliates are responsible for all links to design,
manufacture, sales, use, maintenance,
disposal, recycling, usage, and the like.
Establishment of traceability information Build a platform that links information to the
systems battery code so that related companies can
upload information in a timely manner.
41
Item Content
Promote innovation in market mechanisms Encourage companies to explore new business
and recycling models models and support scientific and
technological research on battery recycling.
Maximise the benefits of comprehensive In order to maximise the residual value of
utilisation of resources spent power batteries, the principle of first
reusing and then considering recycling is
followed.
NEV = new energy vehicle.
Source: MIIT (2018a).
In the same year, interim regulations on traceability management (MIIT, 2018a; 2018b) were
published in accordance with the interim measures. Firstly, the government will build a ‘traceability
management platform’ under which information on all processes of battery production, sales, use,
disposal, recycling, reuse, and others will be collected, and the status of implementation of recycling
will be monitored. Furthermore, NEV producers are also responsible for managing traceability. Each
entity uploads the information shown in Table 3.10 to the platform and associates them with the
battery code.
As of the end of February 2019, 393 automobile manufacturers, 44 scrappers, 37 cascade using
companies, and 42 recyclers had joined the traceability platform (People’s Daily Online, 2019).
Furthermore, today, there are no companies that cover the entire value chains for these (ATCRR,
2020).
Table 3.10. Information to Upload to the Traceability Management Platform

Entity Information
Automobile Manufacturer Vehicle production, sales, repairs,
replacements, battery replacements and
disposal
Vehicle recycling and scrappers Vehicle disposal
Ladder utilisation vendors Battery ladder utilisation (destination, and
others)
Battery recycling vendors Battery recycling (type and amount and others
of renewable resources)
Source: MIIT (2018b).
Also in the same year, a pilot project implementation plan (MIIT (2018) No. 68) for the recycling
and use of batteries for NEV batteries was formulated because of the need to explore various
recycling models that are technically and economically feasible when implementing the interim
measures.
In 2019, a guideline for the installation and operation of recycling facilities for NEV batteries (MIIT,
2019, No. 46) was published. This guideline defines construction requirements, work requirements,
42
safety and environmental requirements for recycling service outlets to be installed by operators
producing and cascade-using NEVs. There are two types of recycling service outlets: They are the
‘collection-style’, which is a temporary storage and has a battery storage limit of 5 tonnes, and the
‘concentrated storage-style’, which is larger. In regions with more than 8,000 NEV company vehicles
and regions where existing recycling service outlets do not have storage capacity and safety
standards, the installation of the concentrated storage-style recycling service outlets is required.
Recycling service outlets require the collection, sorting, storage, packaging, and shipping of used
batteries, but disassembly of batteries for purposes other than safety inspections is prohibited (Yin,
2091).
Currently, 45 NEV manufacturers have installed 3,204 recycling service outlets in 31 provinces
(cities) across the country (ATCRR, 2020).
5.2. Current Status

• EV and EV Battery Industry
Figure 3.4 shows the historical sales of EVs (PHEVs and BEVs) in China. The number of EVs sold in
2019 was 1,060,000 units, accounting for 4.9% of new car sales. The number of EVs sold in 2020
showed a significant increase of +43% over the previous year worldwide (mainly driven by Europe),
while China remained at 12% (Shahan, 2021).
Figure 3.4. New Vehicle Sales of PHEVs and BEVs in China
1,200
1,000
1,000 Units
800
600
400
200
0
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
BEV = battery electric vehicle, PHEV = plugin hybrid electric vehicle.

Source: IEEJ created by IEA (2020).
When viewed by manufacturer, the top three NEV companies in China in 2020 were SAIC Motor
Corporation Limited, BYD, and Tesla. SAIC Motor Corporation Limited (SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile,
which SAIC Motor Corporation owns the majority of shares and is funded by General Motors in the
US) sold well with its small $4,200 EV (Wuling HongGuang Mini EV) launched in July 2020, ranking
second after Tesla's model 3 in 2020. It has been pointed out that EV prices will continue to polarise
43
in China, and sales of low-cost vehicles will increase in regional cities and rural areas, and sales of
high-end, luxury cars will increase in large cities. In addition, with the move to EVs, China is
accelerating its entry from different industries such as Baidu, DiDi, and Alibaba Group (Nikkei,
2021a; EV Sales, 2021; Nikkei, 2021b; Nikkei 2021c).
Regarding EV charging, in addition to normal charging at charging stations and at home, battery
replacement services provided by Shanghai NIO Automobile hat incorporate the ‘battery as a
service’ concept are well established in China. Against the backdrop of EVs’ extended range and
faster charging speeds, such services have become established in China, where private land
ownership basically is not permitted, and where many people live in collective housing in urban
areas, it can be difficult to charge at home. In August 2020, Shanghai NIO Automobile established
an asset management company for EV batteries with four companies, including Contemporary
Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL), and the newly-founded company will move into the
concept of battery subscriptions (EV Smart Blog, 2020).
China has major automotive battery manufacturers such as CATL and BYD, and battery loads are
increasing in proportion to the growth in EV sales (Figure 3.5). In 2019, the share of battery types
(Figure 3.6) was 65% for ternary systems (lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt-oxide, NMC) and 33%
for iron phosphate (lithium-ion phosphate battery, LFP). The shares of NMC tend to increase.
However, in recent years, Tesla has adopted LFP as part of the Chinese produced model of the Tesla
Model 3, and there has also been a regression trend to LFP, which has an advantage in terms of
price. While LFP, which is excellent in terms of safety, is suitable for cascade uses, NMC has a high
content of rare metals such as nickel, manganese, and cobalt, and has high recycle value. Conversely,
looking at the share of vehicle types (Figure 3.7), passenger cars accounted for 68% and buses for
23% in 2019. Previously, the share of buses with large batteries was large, but in recent years, the
share of passenger cars has tended to increase. Battery manufacturers' share of supply is an
oligopolistic market with 50.6% for CATL and 73.4% made up by three companies including BYD and
Guoxuan High-Tech in 2019 (CAAM, 2020).
Figure 3.5. EV Battery Installation in China
EV = electric vehicle, GWh = gigawatt hour.

Source: ATCRR (2021).
44
Figure 3.6. EV Battery Installation by Material Ratio in China
EV = electric vehicle, LFP = lithium-ion phosphate battery, LMO = lithium manganese oxide battery, LTO =
lithium-titanate battery, NMC = nickel, manganese, and cobalt battery.
Source: CAAM (2020).
Figure 3.7. EV Battery Installation by Model Ratio in China
EV = electric vehicle
Source: CAAM (2020).
45
• EV Battery Reuse and Recycling Industry
Figure 3.9 shows the ecosystem of the EV battery reuse and recycling industry in China. Because
automotive manufacturers are responsible for battery reuse and recycling under the extended
responsibility of manufacturers because of the interim measures of 2018, they will have incentives
actively to participate in each process, such as collection and residual value diagnosis and others.
Currently, businesses responsible for reuse and recycling EV batteries are broadly divided into two
types. They are businesses established by automobile and battery manufacturers and businesses
specialising in reuse and recycling. The former is primarily responsible for recycling batteries and
has strengths in building recycling channels. The latter has strengths in recycling technology and
experience; recycling and sales destination channels are improving.
The Alliance of Technological Innovation in Compulsory Resources Recycling Industry, as part of a
study commissioned by the National Development and Reform Commission, has conducted a
performance evaluation related to the implementation of EV battery extended producer
responsibility. According to a survey of 24 operators involved in the value chain (Figure 3.8), the
recycling rate (see note below the figure), ladder utilisation rate, and processing rate in 2019 were
17.2%, 12.2% and 11.8%, respectively.
Figure 3.8. Total Recycling Rate, Ladder Utilisation Rate, Processing Rate of
Power Batteries of the Applicant Enterprises
Note: Recycling is considered to mean ‘the general term for the process of collecting,
categorising, storing, and transporting waste/used automotive batteries’ according to the
definition of the term in the interim measures.
46
Figure 3.9. Overview of the Ecosystem of EV Battery Reuse and the Recycling Industry
in China
1. Vehicle collection operators

Collects NEV through 4S stores (dealers). Small businesses exist in each region. Often there is
no capital relationship with the automobile manufacturer.
2. Vehicle scrappers
Small businesses exist in each region. Deregulation of the re-manufacturing of vehicles using
second-hand components is serving as an incentive for business expansion.
3. Battery carriers
4. Business operators with residual value diagnostic technology

There is a method for obtaining data from a traveling NEV and analysing it, and a method for
physically inspecting the removed storage battery. In the former, the automobile
manufacturer is making efforts, and technological development involving the government is
also under way.
Refurbishment of batteries
5. Reuse businesses (mainly cascade use)

Telecommunications and electricity utilities are beginning to become involved.
6. Vendors detoxifying and extracting rare metals

Battery recycling businesses are beginning to become involved. These businesses are
currently engaged in recycling PCs, smartphones, and the like, and are trying to handle large
on-board batteries.
7. Development Zone Government: Jurisdiction over 2-6

Since 2010, nearly 50 sites have been designated as model urban mining bases. In 2018, 17
provinces, municipalities , and regions were designated as pilot regions to promote the
recycling of batteries.
8. Vendors managing the distribution of used batteries (management organization):

Jurisdiction over 1-4
The system is currently being designed for the management of storage batteries after
vehicles have been recovered. Because storage batteries contain hazardous materials, like
other hazardous materials, they are said not to be distributed across regions at the provincial
level, and there is a policy to establish a management entity for each province.
EV = electric vehicle, NEV = new energy vehicle.

Source: IEEJ created based on METI (2020).
47
• Reuse Industry
The main potential markets for cascading EV batteries are 12V and/or 24V car starter batteries,
uninterruptible power supplies, energy storage systems, mobile power supplies, 36V and/or 48V
electric motorcycle and bicycle batteries, and more (Shahan, 2021).
Telecommunications and electricity utilities are beginning to become involved as businesses.
Regarding prices, it is assumed that reuse batteries will cost about one-third of new batteries and
rebuilt batteries will cost about two-thirds of new batteries (IEA, 2020).
China Tower, the world's largest operator of communication towers, has been demonstrating the
use of reuse batteries as a backup power source for base stations since 2015, and has received
government support as a target company for pilot programmes since 2018. Furthermore, in the
same year, it concluded partnerships with more than 16 major Chinese EV and battery
manufacturers, including BYD. Traditionally, the backup power supply for base stations utilises lead
batteries, which are costly and they are being replaced with second-hand LiBs. The price of reuse
LiBs in China is about the same as that of lead batteries (approximately $100/kWh), and although
second hand, they may be superior to lead storage batteries in terms of life and energy density.
China Tower does not plan to purchase lead batteries after 2018 and claims it will replace all old
lead batteries with reuse batteries in the future. The reuse potential is shown below (Na, 2018;
Greenpeace, 2020).
• As of the end of 2019, China Tower uses more than 4.5 GWh of cumulative cascade batteries
in 350,000 base stations
• Plans to replace 700,000 to 800,000 lead storage batteries in base station with lithium-ion
batteries by 2020
• Overall, it operates nearly 2 million communication base stations with a potential of 54 GWh.
30 kWh per tower (= 1 EV battery pack), equivalent to 2 million EVs
• The popularisation of 5G is expected further to increase demand
Still further, the use for managing renewable energy power is being explored by electricity utilities.
The use of Chinese reuse storage batteries outside the country is also beginning to be considered.
In the relationship with Japanese companies, Itochu and others will purchase batteries collected by
BYD and re-build them to large storage batteries, and there are plans to sell to plants in Europe, the
United States, and Asia in 2021 (Figure 3.10). The application mainly aims to adjust the output of
renewable energy such as solar power generation, mine development in areas without a power
infrastructure, and auxiliary power supply for factories. The price is below CNY150 thousand per
kWh (a level that is 20%–30% cheaper than new industrial storage batteries). China's storage
battery reuse start-up, Shenzhen Pandpower, will conduct performance inspections (Nikkei, 2020).
48
Figure 3.10. Flow of BYD Onboard Batteries Reused Overseas
BYD (China)
Collect used batteries from dealers and others in various locations.
Long-term supply
agreement
Pandpower (China)
Check of battery performance, and others
Capital and business

partnerships
Itochu Corporation (Japan)

 Assembled into large storage batteries in customer demand areas.
 The application mainly assumes adjusting the output of renewable
energy such as solar power generation and the like, mine
development in areas without a power infrastructure, and auxiliary
power supply for factories.
 Plans to sell to Australia, Southeast Asia, Europe, USA, Japan, etc.
Source: Created by IEEJ based on Pinegar and Smith.
• Recycling Industry
Raw material costs account for 50%–70% of total costs in battery manufacturing. With the rapid
increase in battery production, primary resources are being rapidly consumed, while recycling is
inadequate. Using cobalt as an example, between 2014 and 2016, primary ore resource production
increased 4.75 times, while recycling increased only 0.23 times. According to expert calculations, in
order to meet the current supply and demand balance of China's cobalt resources, the recycling
rate must reach 90% or more (MIIT, 2018).
Table 3.11 shows an example of an EV battery recycling facility based in China. Currently, recycled
batteries are mainly waste batteries generated in the process of research and development, and
there are few used batteries in NEVs. In 2017, a total of approximately 11,000 tons of waste
batteries were recycled and disposed. Of those, approximately 70%–80% was generated in the
course of research and development. According to incomplete statistics, GEM, Brunp, and five other
recycling companies have a planned processing capacity of about 250,000 tons. Some used
batteries flow to other recycling companies through auctions, acquisitions, and other channels
(ATCRR, 2020).
49
Table 3.11. Examples of EV Battery Recycling Facilities in China
Company TRL level Technology Capacity (tonnes)
GEM High-Tech Commercial Mechanical and hydro 10,000
Brunp Commercial Mechanical and hydro 25,000–30,000
TRL = technology readiness level.
Sources: IEA (2020) created by Pinegar and Smith (2019) and Eduljee and Harrison (2020).

At the time of the announcement of interim measures in 2018, battery reuse and recycling had only
just begun in China, and the Chinese government had organised the issues as shown below (State
Council, 2018).
• Recycling system not established

 Effective cooperation mechanisms have not been established between automobile
manufacturers, battery production, and integrated use.
 With regard to the implementation of an extended producer responsibility system, the
relevant legal support must be further improved.
• Lack of technical capacity for recycling
 Key common technologies and equipment breakthroughs, such as the ecological design of
batteries, cascade utilisation, and efficient extraction of precious metals, are also needed.
 There is a lack of standards for discharging, storing, and cascade-use batteries.
• Lack of guarantees for incentive policies and measures
 The current recycling market for precious metals is not profitable because the technologies
and markets are immature.
 The associated fiscal and tax incentives are inadequate and market-based recycling
mechanisms have not yet been established.
With regard to the establishment of the first point of the recycling system, the traceability system
is operated by related companies, but the system only requires companies to report by themselves,
and there is no official or third-party supervision or binding penalties. In some reports (Autohome,
2020), it was pointed out that 90% of batteries may have eventually flowed to informal recycling
channels and could not be tracked by traceability systems (Zhang, et al., 2019).
As pointed out in the second and third points, the economy of scale does not work because the
discharge of waste batteries is still low, and the cost of recycling is higher. In particular,
economically feasible recycling technology is still lacking in the case of LFPs, which currently account
for the majority of waste batteries. Recycling focuses on recovering cobalt and nickel in ternary
materials, resulting in low lithium recovery rates (Shahan, 2021).
50
In addition, waste batteries pose safety risks because they are deteriorating. In January 2021, an
explosion (Lee, 2021) occurred at a CATL-affiliated factory that operates LiB recycling business.
Safety measures are required as a prerequisite for building the recycling and reuse industry.

Because the emissions of used batteries will increase rapidly in China in the future (Figure 3.11), it
is believed that the expansion of the market scale, stricter regulation and operation over the life-
cycle, performance inspection and recycling, and other related technical standards can continue to
be strengthened.
Worldwide, it is expected that most of the used EV batteries supplied in the coming years will come
from China. With regard to demand, applications in base stations as backup power sources in China
account for a majority for now, but the potential for energy storage systems and charging stations
is expected to grow in the future (Melin, 2018).
Figure 3.11. Estimation of the Amount of Retired Power Batteries for NEVs
GWh
50 46.78
45 40.92
40
35
30 27.7
24.26
25
20
15.41
15 11.25
10 5.87
0.08 0.24 4.13
5
0.33 0.54 0.56 1.07
0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
GWh = gigawatt hour, NEV = new energy vehicle.
In October 2020, the State Council announced the New Energy Vehicle Industry Development Plan
(2021–2035) (Government of China, 2020). In this plan, the vision was expressed to reduce the
average power consumption of BEVs in new vehicles to 12.0 kWh/100 kilometres by 2025, and to
increase the sales ratio of NEVs to new vehicles from approximately 5% to approximately 20%. It
was also mentioned to promote the development of the entire value chain of power batteries. The
following viewpoints were described (NEDO, n.d.).
• Encourage companies to improve their ability to secure critical resources such as lithium, nickel,
diamonds, platinum, and others.
51
• Construct and maintain a modularised power battery standard system, accelerate the progress
of core manufacturing equipment, and increase technical standards and production efficiency.
• Develop recycling systems for the recovery, cascade-use, and recycling of power cells to
encourage the joint construction and use of recycling channels.
• Establish and maintain a management system for all stages of power battery transportation,
warehousing, repair and maintenance, safety inspection, retirement/withdrawal, collection,
use, and the like, and strengthen the management and supervision of the entire life cycle.
• Ensure the implementation of an extended producer responsibility system, strengthen the
construction of a power battery traceability management platform for new energy vehicles,
and achieve traceability of the entire life cycle of the power battery.
• Support innovative applications of power cell cascade products in fields such as energy storage,
energy reserves, charging, replacement and the like, and strengthen research and
development of technologies such as residual energy measurement, residual value evaluation,
reconfiguration and utilisation, and safety management.
• Optimise systems for the recycling industry, promote efficient extraction of valuable elements
in used power batteries, and promote the development of industrial recycling, high added
value, and greening.
In October 2020, the China Society of Automotive Engineers, commissioned by the Ministry of
Industry and Information Technology, also released the Energy Saving Vehicles and New Energy
Vehicles Technology Roadmap 2.0, a report showing the direction of energy-saving and new energy
vehicles until 2035. In this roadmap, the following five items were indicated as specific goals for
2035 (JETRO, 2020).
• Increase the proportion of NEVs to 50% or more of the number of automobile sales
• Increase the proportion of net electric vehicles to 95% or more of the sales of new energy
vehicles
• Set the number of fuel cell vehicles to approximately 1 million
• Commercial cars implement a model change to hydrogen power
• Make all passenger cars with traditional energy (such as gasoline or the like) power hybrid
vehicles
6. Conclusions
In summary, approaches to the reuse of waste EV batteries differ by country and region.
The EU places the reuse of EV batteries in the context of establishing a circular carbon economy,
and ‘transparency’ of the health of EV batteries is the key for its approach. A carbon footprint
declaration will be required. ‘Battery passports’ linked to the information about the characteristics
of each battery type and model provide valuable data to recyclers and second-life companies. These
batteries will have to comply with minimum recycled content thresholds.
Japan, in addition to the unique efforts of automobile manufacturers, the industry group, the Japan
Automobile Manufacturers Association, Inc., has also launched a joint collection network.
52
Preparations are under way to increase the number of reused EV batteries in the future. In addition,
the Council for Electrified Vehicle Society and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry,
composed of electric power companies and automobile manufacturers, formulated ‘Providing
Information Guideline of In-vehicle Battery Performance’ in June 2020, thereby clarifying specific
measurement methods.
In China, the government will build a ‘traceability management platform’ under which information
on all processes of battery production, sales, use, disposal, recycling, reuse, and others will be
collected, and the status of implementation of recycling will be monitored.
The United States has not established regulations at the Federal level, while reuse and recycling
regulations for EV lithium-ion batteries operate at the state level.
Based on the understanding over the issues/hurdles for the reuse of EV batteries, implications can
be drawn to ensure the following.
safety of EV batteries at the time of operation.
• Technology: Research and development (R&D) should be made to evaluate the performance
of waste batteries.
• Regulatory: Regulatory requirements for manufacturers and owners should clearly formulate
and strengthen the construction of a power battery traceability management platform for new
energy vehicles and achieve traceability of the entire life cycle of the power battery.
identification of some small-scale projects – such as battery systems at distributed energy
systems or other purposes as street lighting would need to be implemented simultaneously.
53
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58
Chapter 4
Reuse of Electric Vehicle Batteries: Economic Viability and
Environmental Impacts
1. Introduction
This chapter investigates the economic viability of reused electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
Comparison will be made in terms of projected sales price of reused EV batteries and new ones.
The chapter also gain insights on the environmental implications of reuse of EV batteries. The
chapter also provides a case study on the real practice of EV battery reuse, to draw implications for
ASEAN countries.
2. How to Refurbish EV Batteries

As the previous chapter described, under the BEV ambitious scenario, as much as 2,166 gigawatt
hours (GWh) of waste from reusable batteries from EVs will be available in the Asian market.
Meanwhile, the gap between the stationary usage for flexibility adjustment and supply from used
EVs will be substantial – the need for stationary backup batteries for the Indochinese Peninsula and
the Malay Peninsula would be 500–600 GWh. This gap implies the importance for ASEAN countries
to create the value chain of reusing the waste batteries.
It is often described that EV batteries when the remaining capacity reaches 70%, would have to be
replaced for safety reasons. Then how to establish a system that can allow the reuse of EV
batteries? Figure 4.1 describes the reuse and recycling of EV batteries. As shown in the figure, the
reuse is to refurbish the batteries for the other purposes. The reused batteries are also recycled
after its end of life, to metallurgical separation of materials into raw materials such as cobalt, nickel,
and lithium.
Depending on the quality of waste batteries, some of them will be directly placed into the recycling
process to obtain raw materials.
The waste batteries could be reused into:
• reuse in EVs
• reuse in other battery applications (such as street lighting, elevators, wheelchairs, etc.)
• stationary energy storage for residential coupled with rooftop photovoltaic (PV) panels
• stationary energy storage for commercial and industry sector
• grid scale energy storage
59
Figure 4.1. EV Battery Reuse and Recycling Process
EV = electric vehicle, kWh = kilowatt hour.

Some examples of reused batteries are listed in Table 4.1.
Table 4.1. Examples of Reused Battery Applications

Company EV Battery Reuse Application Location
Acceleron Energy storage United Kingdom
Audi Forklifts and factory tugs Germany
Audi Energy storage Germany
BJEV EV charging and backup power
BMW Energy storage farm Germany
Box of Energy Stores energy from roof top solar Sweden
panels to run elevators and lights
BYD Grid scale energy storage, backup
power
Chevrolet Backup power at GM’s Data Centre United States
Daimler Grid scale energy storage,
commercial and industrial energy
storage
Hyundai Grid scale energy storage
Honda/American Grid integration of energy storage
Electric Power
60
Company EV Battery Reuse Application Location
Nissan/Eaton/Mobility Energy storage Netherlands
House
Nissan/Sumitomo Street lighting Japan
Nissan/Sumitomo Large-scale power storge Japan
Renault Renewable storage
Renault Backup power for elevators France
Toyota
Toyota Reuse of Prius hybrid batteries to run Japan
refrigerators in 7-Eleven stores
Volkswagen Mobile charging station Germany
Sources: Stringer and Ma (2018); Circular Energy Storage (2019).
3. Economic Perspectives of Refurbishing EV Batteries

It is important to understand the cost of refurbishing EV batteries. Recently, the price of new
batteries has substantially declined for increasing number of order, and new pack design (BNEF,
2020). Therefore, the economic viability of refurbished EV batteries depends on its competitiveness
against new one – which is a challenging task for those companies engaged in the business as they
would have to ensure operational safety in refurbished batteries, long-economic life at the same
time.
The cost of EV battery packs declined substantially from $1,100 per kilowatt hour (kWh) in 2010 to
$137 per kWh in 2020. This represents 86% reduction in 10 years as shown in Figure 4.2.
Despite the substantially reduction, EV batteries are the most expensive part in EV, as it utilises the
rare metals. The cathode typically contains lithium ion and anode utilises a mix of graphite, and
electrolytes. Typically, the cost share of battery pack and cell represents nearly 30%–50% of total
EV costs.
61
Figure 4.2. Volume-weighted Average Pack and Cell Price Trends
kWh = kilowatt hour.

Source: BNEF (2020).
To understand the future economic viability of refurbished batteries, this section offers the
estimation of the future cost of lithium-ion batteries. To estimate the cost, a learning curve analysis
method is utilised. The basic concept of a learning curve analysis is that as the quantity of
production units double, the cost of producing a unit is decreased by a constant percentage. For
example, an ‘80%’ learning curve implies that cost associated with the incremental output will
decrease to 80% of their previous level (or 20% reduction from the previous level).
The learning curve can be explained as follows.
Y = average cost of unit X

A = the first unit cost
X = unit number (cumulative volume)
b = slope coefficient = log(slope of the learning curve)
log2
62
Figure 4.3. Example of Lithium-ion Battery Cost Estimates using the Learning Curve
Unit Cost ($/kWh)
250
209
200
188 177
167 169
147
150 146
134
125 119
100 102
93
75
90% 80% 70% 60%
50
0
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700
Lithium-Ion Battery
Production (GWh)
GWh = gigawatt hour, kWh = kilowatt hour.
Figure 4.3 shows the example of lithium-ion battery cost estimates using the learning curve. As the
figure shows, at different learning rate assumptions of 60%, 70%, 80%, and 90%, the estimated cost
per kWh differs when the production units double. For example, at the assumption that lithium-ion
battery module production doubles from the current 28 GWh to 56 GWh, the cost is estimated to
decrease from $209/kWh to $167/kWh at the learning rate of 80%. With further doubling the
production to 168 GWh, the cost is estimated to represent $147/kWh at the same learning rate.
The cost estimate depends on the future production volume of lithium-ion battery modules. For
this analysis, the IEEJ’s outlook for lithium-ion battery modules (required to meet the future
demand for hybrid vehicles, PHEV, and EV) is utilised. The assumption is being made that the 30%
of total vehicle sales would be EVs by 2030, and 100% of vehicle sales would be EVs in 2050. With
this analysis, the total lithium-ion battery production volume would reach cumulative level of 5,076
GWh by 2040 in contrast to mere 34 GWh in 2014.
63
Figure 4.4. IEEJ’s Global Outlook for Lithium-Ion Battery for HEVs, PHEVs, and EVs (Cumulative)
GWh
6,000
5,076
5,000
4,654
4,254
4,000 3,877
3,520
3,183
3,000 2,865
2,564
2,281
2,014
2,000 1,763
1,529
1,314
1,118
941
1,000 783
644
521
414
244 322
55 85 126 179
34
0
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 2034 2035 2036 2037 2038 2039 2040
EV = electric vehicle, GWh = gigawatt hour, HEV = hybrid electric vehicle, PHEV = plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.
Source: The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (2017), World/Asia Energy Outlook.
Figure 4.5. Estimated Cost of Lithium-Ion Battery (2016–2040)
$/kWh
300
2016
273
250
209
200
168
150 150
136
124
2030
115
100
107
100 2040
93 88
83 79
75 72
69 66 64 62 59 58
50
56 54 53 51
0
0 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 6,000
Lithium-Ion Battery Production (GWh)
64
Figure 4.5 shows the estimated cost of lithium-ion battery module by 2040. The figure shows the
estimated relationship between the cumulative production of lithium-ion battery by 2040 and
corresponding module cost per kWh. As the figure shows, the cost would decline to reach $72/kWh
by 2030, and further reduced to reach $51/kWh in 2040.
Elementenergy has estimated the cost of repurposed batteries. The repurposing process in this
analysis includes a series of process cost for: dismantling of the battery pack, potential separation
and/or replacement of module, and reassembly into new packs. Then this will be purchased by end-
customers (Elementenergy, 2019).
According to the analysis, the estimated price by end-customer for repurposed batteries will be
$40.4/kWh in 2030, including battery collection, battery transport, original equipment
manufacturer margin, repurposing costs, workshop overhead, end of 2nd life extended producer
responsibility (EPR) costs, and workshop margin. Repurposing costs represent the biggest share –
representing half of the overall price, followed by workshop overheads.
Figure 4.6. Price Breakdown of a Repurposed Battery Placed on Market in 2030
EPR = extended producer responsibility, kWh = kilowatt hour, OEM = original equipment manufacturer.
Source: Elementenergy (2019).
The same study by Elementenergy estimates the price of repurposed batteries up to 2040. The price
is expected to slightly decrease up to 2040 – reaching $35/kWh. The reduction is likely to results
from the volume build-up as shown in the left side of the Figure 4.7.
Meanwhile, it is important to note that the cost share of EPR will increase up to 2050. In 2030, the
EPR share to the final price is estimated at 2%, while it is expected to exceed 9% in 2050. This is
because of the need for larger volumes for exhausted second-life batteries. Despite the increasing
65
EPR costs, the cost of collection fees, repurposing fees, improvements in logistics, and process
efficiency with scale will maintain the price of repurposed batteries at $35/kWh.
The study projects the sales price of new battery at $70/kWh – similar to the IEEJ’s analysis and this
is expected to continue declining to reach $60/kWh in 2050. As this shows, the repurposed battery’s
price will remain the lower level to that of new ones – nearly 42% price gap is expected to continue.
Figure 4.7. Average Sale Prices of Battery Packs (left) and EPR Contribution towards End
Repurposed Pack Costs (right) – Baseline Recycling Case and Baseline EV Uptake
EPR = extended producer responsibility, EV = electric vehicle, kWh = kilowatt hour.

Source: Elementenergy (2019).
4. Environmental Impacts of Refurbishing EV Batteries

In view of the future growth of the EV sales, and to effectively utilise the rare materials, repurposing
would be the important option. Meanwhile, the lifecycle assessment of the impacts of repurposing
is necessary to understand the appropriate applications.
For the purpose of estimating the environmental impacts of applying reuse batteries, a study by
Bobba, Mathieux, and Blengini (2018) compares the reference scenario and repurposed scenario
for those three configurations (A, B, and C) specified in Table 4.2. The analysis is conducted to
understand the life cycle assessment of (i) cumulative energy demand (CED), (ii) abiotic depletion
potential, mineral resources (ADP-res), (iii) global warming potential (GWP), and (iv) human toxicity
cancer effect (HTc).
The scenarios are developed to consider the application of repurposed lithium-ion batteries for a
residential household with PV installation. Amongst the reference scenario, configuration A
represents the case is grid-connected house with ‘new’ lithium-ion battery, and configuration B
assumes grid-connected house without lithium-ion battery. The configuration C is non-grid
connected house with diesel generator.
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Table 4.2. Main Characteristics of the Examined Scenario
Configuration Reference Scenario Repurposed Scenario
A • Grid-connected house • Grid-connected house
• PV installation • PV installation
• Fresh lithium-ion battery • Repurposed lithium-ion battery
storing PV energy storing PV energy
B • Grid-connected house • Grid-connected house
• No battery storage system • Repurposed lithium-ion battery
storing PV energy
C • Stand-alone house • Grid-connected house
• Diesel-electric generator used • Repurposed lithium-ion battery
to satisfy the energy demand storing PV energy
not met by PV
PV = photovoltaic.
Source: Bobba, Mathieux, and Blengini (2018).
Figure 4.8. Benefits of EV Battery Reuse by Configuration
CED = cumulative energy demand, ADP=res = abiotic depletion potential, mineral resources, GWP = global
warming potential, and HTc = human toxicity cancer effect, EV = electric vehicle.
Source: Bobba, Mathieux, and Blengini (2018).
67
The analysis result is expressed as D-reuse. For example, D reuse, GWP of 10% means that reusing
the EV battery in energy storage would reduce 10% of the life cycle global warming potential
compared with reference scenario.
For configurations A and C, life cycle impacts of reusing EV batteries can generate positive benefits
in terms of CED, ADP-res, GWP, and HTc. As the effective utilisation of mineral resources, the
highest benefits can result from configuration B, for ADP-res, representing 93%. Energy savings
impacts would be substantial as represented by CED, in configuration A – reaching 62%. The
contribution to GWP reduction potential is substantial especially for configuration A at 58%.
In contrast, configuration B – with the assumption of no installation of lithium-ion-battery under
the reference scenario – has a negative impact from the application of reused battery. Naturally,
additional energy, and resources utilisation would result in negative impacts on GWP. Meanwhile,
caution needs to be paid for the impact assessment on health denoted as HTc because the analysis
concludes lack of data and evidence would require further efforts for data collection, and
assessment.
The magnitude of CO2 emissions reduction from the reuse and/or recycling would be put in the
context of other manufacturers’ efforts for light-weighting, longer lifetime, and introduction of
sharing services. A study by Material Economics (2018) offers the analysis based on scenario on the
potential of EVs CO2 emissions reduction from materials required to support mobility. As Figure 4.9
shows, EVs offer potential for 70% of CO2 emissions reduction from baseline scenario in 2050. The
biggest contribution would come from longer lifetime of vehicles, followed by light-
weighting/sharing and reuse and remanufacturing.
Figure 4.9. CO2 Emissions from Materials Fall by 70% in a Circular Scenario
80
70
11
60 4
50 9
40
21
30 60
49
20 9
10 17
0
Source: Material Economics (2018).
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Table 4.3. Main Characteristics of the Examined Scenario
Reference Scenario
Reduced weight • Lower average vehicle size in a shared car system, better matching
per vehicle vehicles to actual trip needs
• Advanced design and materials choices
Reuse and • Reduced waste in vehicles production
remanufacturing • Modular design and replacement of components with limited lifetime
• Increase reuse of durable components at end of life
• Controls over inventory and flows in a fleet-managed system of shared
cars
Sharing • Large increase in utilisation in a shared-car system
• Higher occupancy per vehicle with mobility as a service
Longer lifespans • More intensive use increases incentives for durable design
• Electric drivetrains with intrinsically better durability
• Proactive maintenance of fleet-managed vehicles
• Modular design to enable replacement of components with shorter
lifespans
Source: Material Economics (2018).
5. Example of EV Battery Reuse: 4R Energy (Japan)

This section explores the cases of a business model and feasibility study on the reuse of EV batteries.
4R Energy is a joint venture between Nissan and Sumitomo Corp., established in 2010. The company
utilises used batteries from the Nissan LEAF, and repurposes them for various applications,
including for EV batteries, small EVs, large-scale storage, factory backup storage, and others shown
in Figure 4.10.
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Figure 4.10. 4R Energy’s Applications of Used EV Batteries
Small EV Large-scale storage Factory backup
EV Bus Electric forklift Multi-charging Lead

system replacement
Golf cart Automatic guided vehicle
Source: 4R Energy (2018). https://www.4r-energy.com (accessed June 2021).
For the repurposing, it is important to assess the quality of the battery. The EV battery pack consists
of 48 units of modules. Each module consists of four cells; therefore, even if the performance of
one cell deteriorates, it affects the overall performance of the EV module. Therefore, after the end
of the 1st life of EVs, 4R Energy collects the pack and evaluates the performance of each cell.
Figure 4.11. Composition of EV Battery Pack
Source: Nissan (2018), https://ev2.nissan.co.jp/BLOG/474/
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On 9 February 2021, the 4R Energy Corporation and East Japan Railway announced the use of
repurposed batteries from the Nissan LEAF for the backup stationary batteries at railway crossings
(East Japan Railway and 4R Energy, 2021). This backup battery is utilised at the time of railway
crossing maintenance or electricity supply disruption. Interestingly, the backup battery has a longer
lifetime – compared with the conventional lead battery, with lower cost, smaller space, and lighter
weight.
Table 4.4. 4R Energy’s Applications of Used EV Batteries

Previous Repurposed Battery
Type • Lead battery • Lithium-ion battery
Charing time • 70 hours • 24 hours
Lifetime • 3–7 years • 10 years
Cost • - • Maximum 40% lower than
new one
Maintenance • On-site monitoring • Remote monitoring system
Space/Weight • 530 mm×270 mm×470 mm/108 kg • 480 mm×250 mm×430 mm
/55 kg
kg = kilogramme, mm = millimetre.
Source: East Japan Railway and 4R Energy (2021).
6. Conclusions
As this chapter shows, various options are available to reuse the waste batteries from EVs. The
options include reuse in EVs, reuse in other battery applications (such as street lighting, elevators,
wheelchairs, etc.), stationary energy storage for residential coupled with rooftop PV, stationary
energy storage for the commercial and industry sector, and grid scale energy storage.
Understanding the health of EV batteries is the key for establishing a value chain of waste batteries.
The business practice by 4R Energy shows the interesting illustration that the health of batteries
would be monitored from the time of operation in EVs. The company’s evaluation and/or
classification depending on the quality would provide multiple reuse options from high-quality,
middle-quality, and relatively low-quality options of which utilisation frequency is only for
emergency backup purposes.
The reuse of EV batteries would remain an economically viable option in future despite the
observed substantial reduction of EV batteries pack price. From 2016 to 2020, the EV batteries
average pack price has been lowered from $273/kWh in 2016 to $137/kWh in 2020. The IEEJ
analysis shows that the new EV batteries’ pack price is projected to reach $51/kWh with the
assumption of 20% learning rate. Meanwhile, a study by Elementenergy shows that the sales price
of reused EV batteries is likely to remain lower in future compared with that of new ones. The
estimated sales price of reused EV batteries is likely to be somewhere around $35/kWh.
Caution needs to be paid in the assessment of future sales price of EV batteries. The sales price
should depend on the quality. Currently, 4R Energy’s sales price – available from media information
– of reused EV batteries at $115/kWh is 16% lower than the global average price of new batteries
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at $137/kWh, as the former includes applications require high performance for reuse in EVs. It has
to be also considered that the availability of waste batteries is small currently, but it is expected to
increase from 2030 to reflect the higher uptake of EVs.
The environmental benefits of EV batteries reuse is important from policymaking purposes. A study
that compares the environmental benefits of reused EV batteries generate positive performance
for (i) energy savings, (ii) mineral resources savings, (iii) greenhouse gas emissions reduction, and
(iv) health impacts. Nevertheless, careful planning should be required because reuse of EV batteries
does not necessarily generate positive benefits if it is compared with the replacement for grid-
connected electricity supply.
It is also important to put the reuse of EV batteries in a broader context to genuinely understand
the benefits of EVs on the environment. For example, in terms of the magnitude of CO2 emissions
reduction, the largest contributions in future – under the decarbonised generation mix – would
come from the operational stage, followed by light-weighting/sharing, which would be followed by
the contributions from reuse and/or recycling benefits. Again, policy coordination is essential to
plan for obtaining maximum environment benefits from EVs, from generation mix planning,
designing, operation, and reuse and/or recycling.
72
References
BloombergNEF (BNEF) (2020), ‘Battery Pack Prices Cited Below $100/kWh for the First Time in 2020,
While Market Average Sits at $137/kWh’.
Bobba, S., F, Mathieux, and G.A. Blengini (2018), ‘Life Cycle Assessment of Repurposed Electric
Vehicle Batteries: An Adapted Method Based on Modelling Energy Flows’, The Journal of
Energy Storage, October.
East Japan Railway and 4R Energy Corporation (2021), ‘Environmentally Friendly EV Battery Reuse’
9 February. https://www.jreast.co.jp/press/2020/20210209_ho03.pdf (in Japanese)
Elementenergy (2019), ‘Batteries on Wheels: The Role of Battery Electric Cars in the EU Power
System and Beyond’.
https://www.transportenvironment.org/sites/te/files/publications/2019_06_Element_Ener
gy_Batteries_on_wheels_Public_report.pdf
Material Economics (2018), The Circular Economy -a Powerful Force for Climate Mitigation.
https://materialeconomics.com/publications/the-circular-economy-a-powerful-force-for-
climate-mitigation-1
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Chapter 5
Recycling and Reuse of Appliances Outside ASEAN
1. Introduction
This chapter discusses the recycling and reuse of appliances in the European Union (EU), the United
States (US), Japan, and China. These practices are offered to draw implications for electric vehicle
(EV) battery reuse policymaking in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries.
2. European Union
2.1. Overview of Directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment
In the EU, the purpose of the Directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is to
control the generation of WEEE, promote reuse and recycling, and reduce the amount of WEEE. By
reducing the amount of WEEE, member countries and producers are required to build a WEEE
collection and/or recycling system. It is required that producers should bear the cost based on the
principle of producer responsibility, that is, the person who manufactures an environmentally-
friendly product bears the cost of processing (recovery, recycling, reuse).
A revision was made to this directive in 2012 (European Parliament, 2012). The previous directive
required member governments to meet the collection target of 4 kilograms per person. Meanwhile
the collection target was revised that by 2016, 45% of the annual average weight of electrical and
electronic equipment sold in the previous 3 years would have to be met, and by 2019, 65% of the
average annual weight of electrical and electronic equipment sold over the previous 3 years, or 85%
of the total weight of WEEE would have to be met. According to the European Commission, the
2019 recovery target is equivalent to about 20 kilograms of WEEE per person.
The categories covered in this directive are:
1. Temperature exchange equipment (such as air conditioners and refrigerators),
2. Screens, monitors, and equipment containing screens having a surface greater than 100 square
centimetres (cm2)
3. Lamps
4. Large equipment (any external dimension more than 50 cm) including, but not limited to:
household appliances; information technology (IT) and telecommunication equipment;
consumer equipment; luminaires; equipment reproducing sound or images, musical
equipment; electrical and electronic tools; toys, leisure, and sports equipment; medical
devices; monitoring and control instruments; automatic dispensers; and equipment for the
generation of electric currents. This category does not include equipment included in
categories 1 to 3.
74
5. Small equipment (no external dimension more than 50 cm) including, but not limited to:
household appliances; consumer equipment; luminaires; equipment reproducing sound or
images, musical equipment; electrical and electronic tools; toys, leisure, and sports
equipment; medical devices; monitoring and control instruments; automatic dispensers;
equipment for the generation of electric currents. This category does not include equipment
included in categories 1 to 3 and 6.
6. Small IT and telecommunication equipment (no external dimension more than 50 cm)
However, the definition of ‘producer’ in this directive is to resell products manufactured by other
suppliers under their own brand, as well as those established in member countries that
manufacture and sell WEEE under their own brand. This includes those who import to the EU on a
commercial basis (both established in the member countries), and those established in the member
countries or outside the EU for the purpose of selling directly to general households and other users
via the Internet, etc.
Aside from the collection target, the directive has set out recovery and recycling targets for each
product categories, ranging from 75% to 85% recovery rate, and from 55% to 80% of recycling rate.
2.2. Status of Collection Rate under WEEE

Eurostat records the status of collection of electronic and electrical equipment waste (e-waste) in
the EU, as well as the recycling rate of these collected electronic and electrical equipment. As Figure
5.1 shows, of the total collected ones, large household appliances represent the largest at 52.7%,
followed by consumer equipment and photovoltaic panels at 14.6%. The other product categories,
such as electrical tools and medical devices, altogether account for only 7.2% of the collected e-
waste which shows a challenging situation in the EU market (European Parliament, 2021a).
Figure 5.1. Share by Product Category in Total Collected Electronic and Electrical Waste in the
European Union
Other 8.4
Small household appliances 10.1
IT and telecommunications
14.1
equipment
Consumer equipment and
14.6
phtovoltaic panels
Large household appliances 52.7
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
％
Source: Eurostat (2020).
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Figure 5.2 shows the recycling rate of e-waste in the EU. The overall recycling rate was less than
40%.
Figure 5.2. Recycling Rate of e-Waste in the European Union in 2017

90
80
81
70
60 69 70
50
50 51
40 46 47 47 47 48 48
42 44
30 36 37 39 39 39 41 41
32 33 33 35
20 25 27
21
10
0
Romania
Luxemburg
Slovenia
France
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Austria
Croatia
Greece
denmark
Latvia
Slovakia
Sweden
Malta
Ireland
Hungary
Germany
Portugal
Filand
Italy
lithuania
Poland
Belgium
Spain
Netherlands
Bulgaria
Estonia
Figure 5.3. Sales and Collection of Portable Batteries and Accumulators, EU-27, 2009–2018
250,000
200,000
150,000
tonnes
100,000
50,000
0
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Sales of portable batteries Collection of portable batteries
Figure 5.3 shows the sales and collection of portable batteries in the EU from 2009 to 2018. The
collection rate has improved from 31% in 2009 to 46% in 2018. To significantly improve the
collection and recycling of portable batteries, a proposal on the new battery directive has been in
place so the rate should rise to 65 % in 2025 and 70% in 2030. The European Commission’s idea is
76
that other batteries – industrial, automotive, or electric vehicle ones – have to be collected in full
for the purpose of recovering valuable materials such as cobalt, lithium, nickel, and lead. (European
Commission, 2020).
2.3. Future Direction: Towards the Establishment of a Circular Economy

It is recognised in the EU that recycling for e-waste sector is lagging behind production. In the global
context as well, recycle rate reached 20% of total generated e-waste at 44.7 million metric tonnes
(European Parliament, 2021a).
According to a Eurobarameter survey, 77% of EU citizens would repair their devices rather than
replace them; 79% think that manufacturers should be legally obliged to facilitate the repair of
digital devices or the replacement of their individual parts (Taylor, 2020).
The European Commission issued a new circular economy plan in March 2020. The proposal
specifically outlines immediate goals like creating the ‘right to repair’ and improving reusability in
general, the introduction of a common charger, and establishing a rewards system to encourage
the recycling of electronics (Taylor, 2020).
Discussion is ongoing in the EU that is in line with the Circular Economy Action Plan. Members of
Parliament stress the need to establish biding 2030 targets for material use and consumption
footprint for covering the whole life cycle of each product category (European Parliament, 2021b).
Particularly, it is under discussion that broadening the scope of the Ecodesign Directive to include
non-energy-related products. In other words, in the notion that the products durability should be
determined at design phase, the Ecodesign Directive requires manufacturers to design energy
consuming product to reduce energy consumption at its lifecycle basis. New rules on Ecodesign
Directive are expected to be in place in 2021 (European Parliament, 2021c). Also, waste reduction
targets for specific streams and other measures on waste prevention will be formulated in 2022
(European Commission, n.d.).
3. United States
3.1. Overall Waste Management System
In the United States, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), enacted in 1976, is a
federal law that establishes a national waste management system. RCRA targets are broadly
classified into non-hazardous waste specified in Subtitle D and hazardous waste specified in Subtitle
C. For non-hazardous waste, the RCRA sets minimum standards for federal waste landfill sites, while
state governments are the main body for planning, regulation, and implementation, and can set
more stringent standards. The management of hazardous waste is positioned under a
comprehensive federal programme that is strictly controlled cradle-to-grave, which obliges the US
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop standards to identify hazardous waste,
standards, and requirements applicable to generators, transporters, and treatment, storage, and
disposal facilities. However, it is authorised to delegate the development and implementation of
specific programs to state governments (with the exception of Alaska and Iowa, where
implementation authority is granted for all states) (EPA, n.d.).
77
To protect energy and natural resources, one of the RCRA's objectives, the EPA encourages
recycling of whatever is possible, even hazardous waste, through a regulatory approach that is
commensurate with the degree of hazard. Amongst other things, the five types of hazardous waste
(batteries, pesticides, mercury-containing equipment, lamps, and aerosol cans) that can be found
widely, including in general household items, are defined as universal waste, and regulations such
as handling is relaxed to promote its recycling (EPA, n.d.).
3.2. Appliance Recycling

In the United States, there is no federal law equivalent to the EU’s Waste Electrical and Electronic
Equipment Directive. Twenty-five states including California and others, plus Washington, DC, have
enacted and enforced their own recycling laws covering waste electronic equipment such as
televisions and computers that are discarded from homes. The first Waste Electronics Recycling Act
in the United States was enacted in California in 2003. Recyclable devices vary from state to state,
but the big five, namely TVs, desktops, laptops, monitors, and printers are targeted in many states.
For the target entities, households and consumers are targeted in all states, but the coverage of
companies and public facilities is different. Regarding program funds, a method of some form of
extended producer responsibility (EPR) has been adopted in states other than California, and
manufacturers are collecting and recycling targeted devices that come from general households,
small businesses, and the like, free of charge, at their own expense. Conversely, California operates
the programme at a rate paid by consumers when they purchase targeted devices (ERCC, n.d.).
Also, under the Waste Management Hierarchy in the United States, landfill disposal is a last resort,
and 19 states (ERCC LandFill Ban Map) including those that have not enacted recycling laws, prohibit
landfill disposal of waste electronic equipment.
3.3. Battery Recycling

For battery management, the Mercury-Containing and Rechargeable Battery Management Act (the
Battery Act) was enacted in 1996 as a federal law to phase out the use of mercury-containing
batteries and to define the recycling of nickel-cadmium and certain small, sealed lead-acid
rechargeable batteries. This act targets battery and product manufacturers and battery waste
handlers and stipulates that uniform labelling requirements must be established and that batteries
can be removed easily from products. Furthermore, batteries covered by the Battery Act are subject
to universal waste rules throughout the United States under the RCRA (Call2 Recycle website).
In addition, 20 states have enacted their own battery recycling laws. For example, California
enacted the California Rechargeable Battery Recycling Act in 2006. This act requires retailers to
accept rechargeable batteries (including lithium-ion batteries, LiBs) contained in electronics, etc.
from consumers free of charge for reuse, recycling, and appropriate disposal. If such a system is not
in place, retailers are prohibited from selling batteries in California (Department of Toxic Substances
Control).
LiBs are not covered by the Battery Act. For that reason, it is not clear whether they are universal
waste under federal law, but they may meet RCRA-based hazardous waste definitions if they exhibit
properties such as ignitability, reactivity, toxicity, and others, at the time of their disposal. Although
the determination of whether an individual LiB is hazardous waste should be made by the operator
that emits the waste, this determination may be difficult because of different properties depending
78
on the chemical composition and the amount of charge remaining. For that reason, the EPA
recommends that operators treat the LiB under the universal waste regulations. Conversely, LiBs is
subject to the Hazardous Materials Regulations of the Department of Transportation (DOT) and
must be treated as hazardous materials when transported. On the EPA website, it is recommended
to contact the battery purchaser, such as a dealer or scrap collection facility, when disposing of
automotive LiBs (EPA website).
4. Japan
4.1. Legal System
For household appliances discarded from Japanese households, manufacturers, and others
(manufacturers and importers) are required to recycle four items of household appliances under
the Home Appliance Recycling Law and the Small Home Appliance Recycling Law, and business
operators are required to implement the reduce, reuse, recycle (3R) initiatives for 10 industries and
69 items under the Law for the Promotion of Effective Utilization of Resources. In addition, the End-
of-Life Vehicles Recycling Law mandates that automobile manufacturers and the like actively
recycle and properly dispose of used automobiles.
• Home Appliance Recycling Law

The Home Appliance Recycling Law covers four home appliances: air conditioners, televisions (CRT,
flat-panel), refrigerators and freezers, washing machines, and clothes dryers (which account for
approximately 80% of the weight of all home appliances). Manufacturers and others
(manufacturers and importers) are required to recycle the four home appliances that have been
discarded. Manufacturers and others must separate the recovered parts and materials and make
them available for use as parts or raw materials of the products themselves or for transfer
(recycling) to persons who use them as parts or raw materials of the products for a fee or free of
charge. Manufacturers and others are required to achieve a recycling rate (the amount of recycled
goods/the weight of waste appliances to be treated) of at least a certain amount as a recycling
standard for the four appliances. Figure 5.4 shows an overview of the system; Table 5.1 shows
recycling criteria; Figure 5.5 shows the actual recycling rate.
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Figure 5.4. Outline of Home Appliance Recycling Law
Source: The Institute of Energy Economics, Japan.
Table 5.1. Recycling Target

From April From April From April
2001 2009 2015
Air conditioners 60% 70% 80%
TVs CRT 55% 55% 55%
Flat-panel - 50% 74%
Refrigerators and freezers 50% 60% 70%
Washing machines and dryers 50% 65% 82%
TV = television, CRT = cathode ray tube.
Source: Ministry of the Environment.
80
Figure 5.5. Trend of Home Appliance Recycling Rate (%)
CRT = cathode-ray tube, TV = television.

Source: Association for Electric Home Appliances. (http://www.aeha-kadenrecycle.com/effort/#a_03)
• Small Home Appliance Recycling Law

In order to promote the recycling of small, used electronic devices and the like such as digital
cameras and game consoles, the Small Home Appliance Recycling Law is a system that defines
special exceptions concerning the licensing for certified waste disposal businesses following
recycling business plans. Figure 5.6 is an overview of the system.
Figure 5.6. Process of Recycling End-of-life Small Home Appliances
Source: National Institute for Environmental Studies.

(https://www-cycle.nies.go.jp/eng/column/page/202005_01.html)
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• Law for the Promotion of Effective Utilization of Resources
Business operators are required to undertake the reduce, reuse, recycle (3Rs) initiatives for 10
industries (pulp, steel manufacturing, chemistry, automotive manufacturing, and others) and 69
products (computers, small secondary batteries, and others covering approximately 50% of general
and industrial waste) as target industries and products under this law.
Of these, the recovery and recycling of small secondary batteries (NiCad batteries, nickel-metal
hydride batteries, nickel hydrogen storage batteries, lithium batteries, and sealed lead-acid
batteries) is mandatory for manufacturers and others. Recycling rates are set at 60% or more of
NiCad batteries, 55% or more of nickel-metal hydride batteries, 30% or more of lithium batteries,
and 50% or more of sealed lead-acid batteries, respectively, to promote recycling. In 2018, with
regard to the recycling status of small secondary batteries (including for mobile telephones), the
processing amount of NiCad batteries was 739 tons (recycling rate 71.7%), the processing amount
of nickel-metal hydride batteries was 204 tons (76.6%), the processing amount of lithium batteries
was 337 tons (57.4%), and seal lead-acid batteries was 572 tons (50.0%). Furthermore, the actual
recycling rate of each has achieved legal goals.
4.2. Final Disposal of Waste and Material Flow

The final amount of waste discard in Japan is on a decreasing trend. It was approximately 14 Mt in
2018. Figure 5.7 shows the transition in the final amount of waste disposal. Figure 5.8 shows the
material flow in 2017.
Figure 5.7. Final Disposal Amount
Gt = gigaton, Mt = metric ton.

82
Figure 5.8. Material Flow in Japan (2017)
83
5. China
5.1. Overall Waste Management System
In China, three laws have been enacted as basic laws for waste in general. Extended producer
responsibility is the general principle. Also, under these basic laws, individual recycling regulations
have been advanced, especially for automotive waste and electronic waste, which are expected to
increase in the amount generated and offer significant economic benefits from recycling. In recent
years, along with the strengthening of environmental regulations, the building of a regulatory
system for importing waste is also progressing (Envix, 2020). The three laws are:
• Law on Prevention of Environmental Pollution Caused by Solid Waste (issued in 1995): Defines
rules for the disposal of industrial waste, domestic waste, and hazardous waste, and clarifies
the general principles of reduction, recycling, and rendering harmless for solid waste pollution
prevention through amendments in 2020. It was also clarified that the aim is to strengthen the
supervision and management of products such as electrical and electronic equipment, lead-
acid batteries, and automobile-drive batteries by the State, and to establish an extended
producer responsibility system.
• Cleaner Production Promotion Law (issued in 2002): In addition to adopting production
processes that emit less pollutants, companies are required to produce products that are easy
to collect, recycle, and reuse in the production process, and are also mandated to collect
packaging after use.
• Circular Economy Promotion Law (issued in 2008): This defines extended producer
responsibility for waste recycling. It includes comprehensive use of industrial waste, reuse and
recycling of renewable resources.
5.2. Appliance Recycling

Regarding the recycling of waste electronic equipment, under the Chinese version of WEEE
promulgated in 2009, the responsibilities of producers, importers, and the like are defined for 14
items of electrical and electronic equipment, such as adopting effective designs for the
comprehensive use of resources and treatment to eliminate hazards from the design stage, and for
being responsible for the disclosure of information on toxic and hazardous substances. Also, this
establishes funds to assist in the costs necessary for the disposal and collection of such costs from
manufacturers, importers, amongst others, under the concept of EPR. Still further, a qualification
permit system has been created for waste electronic equipment processing companies. This defines
restrictions on the use of hazardous substances (lead, mercury, cadmium, and other substances) in
electrical and electronic equipment in the new Chinese version of the EU Restriction of Hazardous
Substances promulgated and enforced in 2016 (JETRO, 2018) .
In China, waste electrical and electronic products are highly valued as resources, and regular
recyclers are buying them from consumers. However, because non-regular vendors that do not
bear the cost of preventing environmental pollution and damage to public health buy high-value
waste electrical and electronic products at high prices, it is assumed that an overwhelming
proportion of waste electrical and electronic products are still collected and processed through
non-regular routes.
84
5.3. Battery Recycling
As described above, used batteries are also included in solid waste and are subject to reuse and
recycling promotion under the Law on Prevention of Environmental Pollution Caused by Solid
Waste. Furthermore, the Policy on Technologies for Waste Batteries Pollution Prevention
promulgated by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment in 2016 provides practical guidance on
the collection, transportation, storage, maintenance, use, and reuse of used batteries. In this policy,
the main targets for waste battery collection include lead-acid batteries, lithium-ion batteries,
nickel-metal hydride batteries, nickel-cadmium batteries, and button batteries containing mercury
(MEE, 2016).
6. Conclusions
As it is shown by the relatively high rate of Japan’s appliance recycling, it is important to establish
a system that the system needs to be coordinated to involve manufactures, retailers, and
designated recycling entities. In the case of appliance recycling, consumers in Japan would bear the
cost of recycling, and they can hand over the waste appliances to retailers that will send the waste
to designated recycling facility, of which establishment and operation is handled by manufacturing
companies. In the case of reusing EV batteries, it would be important to make an accessible system
for consumers/owners. The handling of the waste would have to be implemented by designated
entities in order to avoid illegal damping or illegal transport to the other countries.
Additionally, as the survey results from consumers in the EU, consumers prefer to repair their
devices rather than replace them or the replacement of their individual parts. This is in line with
the EU’s plan to establish a circular carbon economy. To this end, as the EU tries to enhance
broadening the scope of the Ecodesign Directive – to enhance the production of goods and products
with a long life, manufacturers should be encouraged to enhance the long life of EV batteries.
Regulatory oversight would be important to avoid the trade amongst non-regular vendors as it is
observed in some cases. In this regard, traceability of EVs would be important not only to
understand the operational quality, but also to maximise the reuse of EV batteries to attain mineral
resources efficiency, energy savings, and CO2 emissions reduction.
Regulatory frameworks of reuse and/or recycling of lithium ion batteries are not established in
some countries, while that of nickel-cadmium (and certain small sealed lead-acid rechargeable
batteries are established. Coordination is required to establish consistent regulation governing
these.
85
References
Call2Recycle. Recycling Laws by State. https://www.call2recycle.org (accessed June 2021).

Department of Toxic Substances Control. Managing Hazardous Waste. AB 1125: Rechargeable
Battery Recycling Act. https://dtsc.ca.gov/fs-ab1125/
Envix (2020), Regulation on Waste Management. https://www.envix.co.jp/region/asia-
oceania/cn/cn-waste-reg/ (in Japanese)
Electronics Recycling Coordination Clearinghouse (ERCC) (n.d.), ‘E-scrap 2020 Presentation’.
https://www.ecycleclearinghouse.org/contentpage.aspx?pageid=157
_____ Landfill Ban Map. https://www.ecycleclearinghouse.org/contentpage.aspx?pageid=58
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (n.d.), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
Laws and Regulations. https://www.epa.gov/rcra
_____ (n.d.), Used Lithium-ion Batteries. https://www.epa.gov/recycle/used-lithium-ion-batteries
European Commission (n.d.), ‘Quick Reference on CEAP Implementation’.
https://ec.europa.eu/environment/pdf/circular-
economy/implementation_tracking_table.pdf
_____ (2020), ‘Green Deal: Sustainable Batteries for a Circular and Climate Neutral Economy’, Press
Release, 10 December.
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_2312
European Parliament (2012), Directive 2012/19/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council
on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) (amended 2018). https://eur-
lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:02012L0019-20180704
_____ (2021a), ‘E-waste in the EU: Facts and Figures (infographic)’, 3 March.
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/headlines/society/20201208STO93325/e-
waste-in-the-eu-facts-and-figures-infographic
_____ (2021b), ‘Circular Economy: MEPs Call for Tighter EU Consumption and Recycling Rules’,
Press Release, 10 February. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-
room/20210204IPR97114/circular-economy-meps-call-for-tighter-eu-consumption-and-
recycling-rules
_____ (2021c), ‘How the EU Wants to Achieve a Circular Economy by 2050’, Press Release, 3
February.
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/headlines/society/20210128STO96607/how-
the-eu-wants-to-achieve-a-circular-economy-by-2050
JETRO (2018), ‘China’s Environmental Regulation and Market Size – Latest Trends’.
https://www.jetro.go.jp/ext_images/_Reports/02/2018/c69f969c3c3cecc8/rpcn-
kankyou.pdf (in Japanese)
86
Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the People’s Republic of China (MEE) (2016),
‘Announcement on Issuing “Technical Policy on Pollution Prevention and Control of Lead-
Battery Regeneration and Production” and Technical Policy on Pollution Prevention and
Control of Waste Batteries”’, 26 December.
https://www.mee.gov.cn/gkml/hbb/bgg/201612/t20161228_378325.htm (in Chinese)
Taylor, K. (2020), ‘Parliament Backs Consumer’s Right to Repair in Push Towards Circular Economy’,
Euractiv, 27 November. https://www.euractiv.com/section/circular-
economy/news/parliament-backs-consumers-right-to-repair-in-push-towards-circular-
economy/
87
Chapter 6
Policy Implications
Amongst the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, electric vehicles (EVs) are
considered an important option for tackling local air pollution and enhancing energy security – away
from oil dependence and climate change mitigation. Some countries such as Indonesia and Thailand
consider EVs as an important option for developing a manufacturing basis. Indonesia has laid out
plans for developing a battery manufacturing industry with the use of local resources, while
Thailand aims to become the regional hub for the EV manufacturing industry.
Meanwhile, the plan for the reuse of waste batteries from EVs has not been formulated yet in
ASEAN countries. Understanding the magnitude of waste batteries in the future is the first step,
and the formulation of policies by each member country is necessary.
As this analysis result shows, a substantial number of reusable batteries from EVs will be available
in ASEAN by 2040. The reference case analysis shows that the available supply would amount to
325 gigawatt hours (GWh), and it would expand to 778 GWh in the hybrid electric vehicle (HEV)
bridge scenario. The ambitious battery electric vehicle (BEV) scenario is projected to generate 2,166
GWh of reusable batteries by 2040.
A mechanism is needed for dealing with such a large number of used batteries. For example, one
method is to reuse them as backup batteries for variable renewable energy (VRE) power generation.
According to an analysis on ASEAN power systems (focusing on the Indochinese Peninsula and the
Malay Peninsula) by ERIA (2021), it is estimated to need backup batteries of 500–600 GWh when
VRE accounts for 40% of the generation mix in 2040. A substantial gap is likely to exist.
It is necessary to consider a wide range of options for reusing and/or recycling batteries. Depending
on the quality of the used batteries, they could be utilised as replacement EV batteries, or for large-
scale grid storage. Other options could be used for residential storage, back up in factories, and
street lighting.
To realise the reuse of EV batteries, the following practices need to be encouraged:
safety of EV batteries at the time of operation. This would allow the timing of replacement,
and conditions for repurposing as well.
• Technology: Research and development (R&D) should be made to evaluate the performance
of waste batteries. Evaluation of used EV batteries is a time-consuming process, as it would
have to check the performance by cell, pack, and module as a whole. R&D should be
encouraged to develop a system as well as know-how that can shorten the time required for
evaluation.
• Regulatory: Regulatory requirements for manufacturers and owners should be clearly
formulated. They would strengthen the construction of a power battery traceability
88
management platform for new energy vehicles and achieve traceability of the entire life cycle
of the power battery.
identification of some small-scale projects – such as battery system at distributed energy
systems or other purposes as street lighting would need to be implemented simultaneously.
• Collection System: it is important to establish a system that needs to be coordinated to involve

manufacturers, retailers, and designated recycling entities. Aside from the establishment of
traceability, it is important to establish a system that consumers and/or owners are accessible
to be involved in the value chain of EV batteries reuse. Dealers should be able to play the
important role for maintenance as well as communication with consumers and/or owners in
this regard.
The environmental benefits of reusing EV batteries would be important for policymaking purposes.
In case the reused battery is replaced by a new one, it can generate benefits such as (i) energy
savings, (ii) mineral resources savings, (iii) greenhouse gas emissions reduction, and (iv) health
impacts. Nevertheless, careful planning should be required because the reuse of EV batteries does
not necessarily generate positive benefits if it is compared with the replacement for grid-connected
electricity supply.
It is also important to put the reuse of EV batteries in a broader context to genuinely understand
the benefits of EVs on the environment. For example, in terms of the magnitude of CO2 emissions
reduction, the largest contributions in future – under the decarbonised generation mix – would
come from the operational stage, followed by light-weighting and/or sharing, which would be
followed by the contributions from reuse and/or recycling benefits. Again, policy coordination is
essential to plan for obtaining maximum environment benefits from EVs, from generation mix
planning, designing, operation, and reuse and/or recycling.
89

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ERIA Research Project Report FY2023 No.

Reuse of Electric Vehicle Batteries

Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA)

© Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia, 2024

List of Project Contributors vi

List of Figures vii

List of Abbreviations and Acronyms xi

Executive Summary xiii

Figure 1.1 Roadmap of Swap Battery Stations in Indonesia 3

Table 1.1 Indonesia’s EV Stock Target 2

ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations

The main findings from the analysis are summarised below.

• EV Policy and Target

• Current Status of EV introduction

• Variable Renewable Energy (VRE) Introduction Plan

Table 1.1. Indonesia’s EV Stock Target

Figure 1.1. Roadmap of the Number of Swap Battery Stations in Indonesia

• Current Status of EV Introduction

• two-wheeled and/or three-wheeled EVs, and

• four-wheeled and/or more EVs

Table 1.4. Two- and Three-wheeled EVs in Indonesia

Year Local Content

Year Local Content

• Battery Reuse Plan

• VRE Introduction Plan

• EV Policy and Target

Table 1.6. Target Sales Share of EVs in Malaysia

Year 2025 2030

Passenger vehicles 9% 15%

Buses 2,500 units 10,000 units

Table 1.7. Economic Incentives for the Purchase of EVs in Malaysia

2021–2022 2023–2025 2026–2030

BEV 100% import and 50% exemption

PHEV 100% import and 75% exemption 50% exemption

• Current Status of EV Introduction

• EV and Battery Production Plan

• VRE Introduction Plan

• Current Status of EV Introduction

As of 2019, 45 standards have been established.

Table 1.10. Electric Vehicle Companies in the Philippines

Company Name Employment

• VRE Introduction Plan

• Current Status of EV Introduction

• EV and Battery Production Plan

• Battery Reuse Plan

• VRE Introduction Plan

Type of Business Incentives

EV charging stations - 5-year corporate income tax exemption,

Year HEV/PHEV BEV Total EV ICEV*

• EV Battery Production Plan

• Battery Reuse Plan

• VRE Introduction Plan

1.7. Viet Nam

• EV Policy and Target

• Current Status of EV Introduction

• EV Battery Production Plan, EV Criteria

• Battery Reuse Plan

• VRE Introduction Plan

50% Annual Mileage