Remarketing sector has key role in EV battery repair and recycling

The vehicle remarketing sector has a key role to play in developing the UK’s EV battery repair and recycling infrastructure as growing numbers of electric vehicles enter the used market, the Vehicle Remarketing Association (VRA) has said.

Speaking at the latest VRA member meeting, industry experts highlighted the need to develop a resilient, circular battery economy in the UK, covering battery testing, repair, reuse and end-of-life recycling.

“We must ensure batteries are not exported for recycling. We have already paid for the highly valuable materials they contain and should maximise the opportunity to reuse them to enhance our own manufacturing and security,” he said.

“Vehicle remarketers have an important part to play here by partnering with certified UK recycling providers, ensuring safe collection and storage, engaging insurers to strengthen corporate responsibility for end-of-life battery recycling, and lobbying for battery producer responsibility to fund local recycling.”

Battery repair increasingly important for used EVs

Battery repair was also identified as an increasingly important part of maintaining a viable used EV market as vehicles move beyond manufacturer warranties.

“As batteries move out of manufacturer warranties, safe, compliant and economic repair services need to be accessible. With the rapid pace of development in EV batteries, there is a good chance that direct replacement batteries won’t be available.

“Repair is likely to be the only option if you want to keep vehicles on the road and maintain the used vehicle market. The best way to ensure this can be done is to establish repair programs early.”

Abhishek Sampat, Head of Electric Vehicles at BCA, said customers were increasingly considering battery repair where it provided an economically viable alternative to replacement.

“Understandably, cost is the key driver. If a battery can be restored economically – and it is important to stress that many of the most common issues are not complex and can be resolved in a matter of hours by the right staff and equipment – customers will choose to repair,” he said.

Battery state-of-health testing was another focus of the meeting, with Roland Gagel of European remarketing association CARA discussing its industry-standard battery testing scheme.

However, the rapid introduction of new EV models is creating challenges for companies providing battery assessments.

Alex Johns, Business Development Partner at MOBA, said the pace at which EVs, particularly models from new Chinese manufacturers, are entering the market meant providers needed to continually develop their ability to assess different battery technologies.

Nikolaus Mayerhofer, founder of AVILOO, said testing was also evolving beyond measurements of battery capacity to encompass safety and fault identification.

Used EVs influencing wider car market

The meeting also heard evidence that growing used EV demand could be starting to influence traditionally resilient areas of the used internal combustion engine (ICE) market.

“This has been a resilient part of the market for many years, but it seems some buyers are now choosing to either switch to a new car from one of the Chinese new entrants or the EV version of a 3-5-year-old ICE model,” he said.

“The current price of fuel is making used electric cars look highly attractive from a running cost point of view.”

The VRA meeting was held at Wilson’s Auctions’ Queensferry site, which has recently undergone a four-year, £10 million investment programme.

“The emergence of a range of services supporting the life cycle of motive batteries is essential to the EV market as it grows, and today, we provided our members with in-depth briefings on how the current picture needs to evolve.”