Toyota Motor North America is expanding its battery recycling network with Cirba Solutions, a battery recycling materials and management company.

The agreement expands Toyota’s battery recycling network and optimizes its logistics network for end-of-life lithium-ion battery collection from Midwest and East Coast regions, including those from hybrid and battery EVs. Processing will take place at Cirba Solutions’ Lancaster, Ohio facility, which recently received an $82-million DOE grant under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This facility will extract critical minerals from scrap and end-of-life batteries with an up to 95% recovery rate, and supply battery-grade metals back into the supply chain.

New automotive battery plant Toyota Battery Manufacturing North Carolina (TBMNC) is also under construction and expected to open in 2025 with a $14-billion investment.

Toyota collects approximately 25,000 used automotive batteries—primarily nickel-metal hydride batteries found in its hybrid vehicles—from its dealership network each year and expects the number of end-of-life batteries will double by 2030 as its EV sales increase.

“Cirba Solutions’ large and well-established transportation and recycling network ensures Toyota has nationwide battery collection and recycling to reduce both our costs and our operational carbon footprint,” said Christopher Yang, VP at Toyota Motor North America. 

Source: Toyota Motor