Ecobat plays an essential role in the collection, recycling, production, and distribution of energy storage solutions. Its pan-European battery distribution business, Ecobat Battery, and collection and recycling division, Ecobat Solutions, provide battery collection and recycling management services to empower sustainability efforts around the world.
There is interest in how the world will handle the end of an electric vehicle (EV)’s battery life. Although enormous strides have been made in EV battery capability and lifespans, the initial production and final disposal plans have not progressed as quickly, according to Ecobat.
Ecobat Battery European Marketing Manager, Thom Poole, said: “The lithium battery, which is generally the battery of choice for vehicle manufacturers (VM) globally, is an incredibly effective power storage solution.
“It is virtually maintenance-free, is lighter than a traditional lead-acid battery and smaller in size for the same power output. It provides a longer service life, delivers more charging ‘cycles’ and can be discharged to higher levels between charging; however, it is expensive to produce and, in stark contrast to lead-acid batteries, difficult to recycle.”
That’s where Ecobat comes in: to address the EV battery recycling dilemma, Ecobat Solutions’ UK site has been diagnosing, disassembling, discharging, reengineering and recycling lithium batteries for the last 18 months.
Ecobat Solutions European Marketing Manager, Peter Coleman, said: “To date, it has processed more than 2,000 batteries, which, bearing in mind that all lithium-ion must be transported under strict dangerous goods regulations, is no small achievement.
“Furthermore, to ensure it can offer a fully-compliant transportation service, it helped to develop a special critical battery transportation box that can be deployed in the event of batteries being damaged or potentially liable to thermal runaway.”
Positive implications for independent sector
Although Ecobat’s service offering is mainly focused on original equipment manufacturers (OEM), which have an extended producer responsibility for their batteries – from installation in the vehicle to responsible end-of-life recycling – the company is aware that forward thinking independent workshops and their motor factor supply partners do not want to get left behind when it comes to the service and repair of EVs.
Peter continued: “We want to do all we can to encourage third parties to be very careful when handling battery packs, cells and modules for hybrid and EVs, as they can be very dangerous, a fact that is taken with the utmost seriousness at all our facilities.
“Moreover, while our main facility at Darlaston is optimised for the safe processing of batteries at every stage, we also offer an on-site engineering service in the event of a critical incident.”
Ecobat offers a service, rather than a buy/sell model for EV batteries, which the company said helps manufacturers meet compliance requirements and ensures they conform to legal responsibilities. This encourages second life usage and responsible recycling to support a circular supply chain.
Thom intervened: “Ecobat is in an unusual position to apply decades of experience in recycling to lithium batteries, a service the market desperately needs.
“Through our battery distribution arm, we can supply the batteries the industry needs daily, whether that’s traditional starter batteries or the increasingly important start/stop and auxiliary batteries that are required for micro-hybrids. Through our battery collection and recycling division, we have the ability to safely dispose of any of the batteries the independent sector is likely to come across, including lithium-ion, which is one of the obstacles that has previously held companies back from optimising the opportunities that hybrid and EV service and repair can deliver.”
