Pip: The world is drowning in spent EV batteries. And somewhere in the middle of the steppe, Mongolia is raising its hand to say it has a plan-wich, honestly, is more than most countries can claim.
Mara: That’s the territory we’re covering today, thanks to Enji’s recent writing for MCBI Mongolian Battery Initiative — global recycling trends, what’s broken in the current system, and why Mongolia sees a strategic opening right now.
Pip: Let’s start with the global picture — where all those batteries are actually going.
Global EV Battery Recycling
Mara: The core question here is whether the world’s recycling infrastructure can keep pace with the sheer volume of batteries coming off the road — and right now, the honest answer is no.
Pip: The post on EV Battery Recycling: Global Trends and Key Findings puts a number on the scale: “The World Resources Institute estimates this volume could reach 20.5 million tonnes by 2040.”
Mara: That’s end-of-life batteries piling up faster than the systems exist to handle them. In the UK, 90 percent of used EV batteries go unprocessed due to insufficient recycling capacity. In China, 20 to 30 percent move through unregulated channels entirely.
Pip: So the infrastructure gap isn’t a future problem — it’s already here.
Mara: And the stakes for closing it are significant. The IEA estimates that by 2050, recycling could reduce the need for newly mined lithium and nickel by 25 percent, and cobalt by up to 40 percent. The recycled critical minerals market itself could reach 200 billion dollars by 2050.
Pip: Which reframes recycling from a cleanup operation into something closer to a mining strategy — just one that starts at the end of the supply chain instead of the beginning.
Mara: Policy is starting to reflect that. The EU launched its Battery Booster program on June 11, 2026, with 1.5 billion euros in announced support, designating recycling and material recovery as a strategic industrial sector. Manufacturers like BYD and CATL are integrating recycling directly into their production systems.
Pip: Even batteries that aren’t ready for the shredder yet have a second act — capacity drops to 70 to 80 percent and they move into stationary storage. Though the post is clear that’s a stopgap, not a solution.
Mara: That brings us to where Mongolia fits — and why the timing matters.
Circular Battery Systems In Mongolia
Mara: The post “Why Mongolia Needs a Circular Battery System Now” frames this plainly: “This is not just an environmental issue. It is an economic and strategic opportunity.”
Pip: Acting early, before the waste wave arrives, is exactly the kind of positioning most regions wait too long to attempt.
Mara: MCBI’s aim is to extend battery life, enable second-life applications, recover critical materials, and build a circular system that protects land, water, and future generations — the full loop, not just the end of it.
Pip: A 200-billion-dollar materials market and a steppe nation moving first — that’s a combination worth watching.
Mara: Next time, we’ll see how that strategy develops on the ground.
Leave a Reply