From Waste to Wealth: Circular Economy Approaches for Recycled EV Batteries in Energy Storage

The war that began in Ukraine in 2022 has made European governments understand their significant dependence on fossil fuels, specifically natural gas for electricity generation through combined cycle plants. As a result of this war, Europe reduced its importation of natural gas from Russia, raising its price and directly increasing the cost of energy generation. The position taken by European governments was to develop and accelerate the energy transition from fossil fuel-based generation to renewable energy sources. One of the challenges that arise from producing energy in this way is the need to store the energy produced when demand is low and utilize it when demand is high. Another major challenge is finding ways to give a second life to batteries discarded by the growing electric vehicle industry when their charging capacity is no longer optimal. This paper seeks to find an innovative and ethical model of circular economy based on existing models, whereby the evaluation of cells from discarded electric vehicle batteries can make it profitable to create energy storage systems and reintroduce these batteries into the market. This aligns with the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, generating clean and affordable energy (SDG 7), providing a solution to high demand peaks in the industry through innovation in electrical infrastructures (SDG 9), and helping to improve responsible consumption (SDG 12).