Korean battery companies enter the waste battery market due to raw materials price hike
LG Energy Solution (leftmost) and SK Innovation (center) batteries, which are pouch-type batteries, and Samsung SDI batteries, which are prismatic batteries
As prices of raw materials for battery cells have recently increased, Korean battery manufacturers have entered the waste battery market.
This is because core materials of the battery, such as nickel and cobalt, can be extracted from the waste battery. According to related industries on the 28th, Chinese companies have recently raised prices of raw materials for electric vehicle (EV) battery cells, such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel. Lithium price reached 190.5 yuan (about 35,458 won), up 410 per cent from the average price last year. China is the largest supplier of lithium for secondary batteries, such as lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate. Along with lithium, the price of cobalt, core materials for cathode materials, also reached USD 69,000 per ton this month, up 120 per cent from a year ago.
Congo accounts for about 60 per cent of global cobalt reserves, but China has dominated supply chains such as minerals and cobalt compounds. Nickel prices also increased to USD 23,305 (about 24.09 million won), up 47 per cent from the last year. As prices of core materials increase, Korean battery manufacturers are paying attention to waste batteries that can improve cost competitiveness and reduce environmental pollution. A battery industry source said, “The number of materials extracted from waste batteries may account for 40 per cent of the number of materials supplied from mines. It can be a great alternative option in the future.”
