Australians consume 8.5 kilograms of batteries on average per person every year. A huge growth market is in lithium batteries, and a large percentage of these batteries are currently not recycled. The Battery Stewardship Council established B-cycle in 2022 to work with industry and government to reverse this trend.
The Battery Stewardship Council commissioned the Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF) to perform an analysis of Australian battery sales, stocks and recycling flows and assess the life cycle impacts of the Australian battery recycling market for 2021. The project aim was to ascertain the market status of battery recycling in Australia before the B-cycle scheme was launched. The results of our analysis were launched in 2023 at the Australian Battery Recycling and Manufacturing Summit.
Batteries play an important role in the transition to a post fossil fuel economy and circularity.
– Libby Chaplin, Battery Stewardship Council CEO
The insights we have delivered fill a gap in the available data on Australian battery recycling and provide a useful performance benchmark for the B-cycle scheme moving forward.
See below for an excerpt from Battery Stewardship Council's CEO, Libby Chaplin:
"Batteries play an important role in the transition to a post fossil fuel economy and circularity. With a vast array of battery applications continuing to grow, a significant reserve of battery raw materials, and a desire to invest in a local battery industry, Australia’s future for batteries and associated technologies is strong.
Having clear and consistent projections about the growth of battery sales by chemistry, market sector, and application is critically important for supporting sound investment into technologies and infrastructure for reuse, refurbishment, or recycling.
This report is the latest research into the Australian battery market and builds on previous research undertaken in 2018. It brings new insight to aid in the ongoing discussion and development of stewardship for the growing battery market. The general trajectory of the battery market being forecast in this 2023 report mirrors that of the 2018 report and indicates a consistent and strong forward projection for the industry."
RESEARCH OUTPUTS
Battery Market Analysis (2023) (Report)
Battery Life Cycle Analysis (2023) (Report)
Researchers
-
Senior Research Consultant -
Research Principal -
Research Assistant
Year
- 2023
Client
- Battery Stewardship Council
