Iveco Group turns to chemical giant BASF for electric vehicle battery recycling

Iveco Group selected BASF as its first partner to provide a recycling solution for the lithium-ion batteries of the Group’s electric vehicles. BASF, which has recently inaugurated Europe’s first co-located center of battery material production and battery recycling in Schwarzheide, Germany, will organize and manage the entire recycling process for the lithium-ion batteries used on Iveco Group electric vans, buses and trucks.

According to the official release, The agreement includes the collection, packaging, transport, and recycling of batteries, in various European countries including, among others, France, Germany and UK. After collection, BASF will mechanically process the batteries to black mass, from which critical raw materials – such as nickel, cobalt, lithium – can be extracted and recovered for use in the manufacturing of new batteries.

Statements from Iveco Group and BASF

“Life cycle thinking is one of our strategic sustainability priorities”, commented Angela Qu, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Iveco Group. “BASF shares this approach with us, and its broad battery collection network and recycling capabilities in Europe will help us close the loop from end-of-life batteries to new ones.

“The partnership with Iveco Group is our first agreement to recycle batteries from electric vans, buses and trucks and an important step for our battery recycling business to expand our activities into the commercial vehicle space”, added Daniel Schönfelder, President of BASF’s Catalysts division, who is also responsible for the company’s battery materials and battery recycling business. “It will allow us to further strengthen our European collection network and make further progress in this developing market.