Redwood and Audi want to turn your old electronic devices into EV batteries

Lithium-ion battery recycler Redwood Materials and Audi are today launching a program that enables consumers to drop off their old battery-powered devices at local Audi dealerships, and then Redwood will recycle them to build EV batteries.

Redwood already has a partnership with Volkswagen Group of America to recycle all end-of-life batteries from Volkswagen and Audi EVs, but this is the first time an automaker has partnered with Redwood to support the collection of household lithium-ion batteries alongside larger EV battery recycling efforts. 

Redwood will place recycling bins at select Audi dealerships across the US over the coming weeks. Batteries and devices collected dropped off in the bins will then be recycled by Redwood in order to build more sustainable, domestic EV batteries.

In October, Redwood announced that Argonne National Laboratory testing revealed that Redwood’s battery components from recycled content performed just as well as raw materials.

But, Redwood notes:

Less than 5% of lithium-ion battery-containing devices get recycled, mainly because clear recycling pathways don’t exist. Redwood and Audi see a tremendous opportunity to create these pathways, allow consumers to recycle their batteries, and then use these batteries to domestically remanufacture new, sustainable electric vehicle batteries.  

The Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has requirements for the domestic sourcing and recycling of critical minerals used in EV batteries. So recycling end-of-life consumer batteries can help build domestic supply chains.

Drop your old battery-run devices – from cell phones to laptops, e-bikes, e-scooters and electric toothbrushes to vacuum cleaners and power drills – off at your local Audi dealership for recycling.

Photo: Redwood Materials

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