ENERGY WASTE NEXUS: End-of-Life Management of Lithium-Ion Batteries

To become competitive in the electric vehicle field and transition towards full electric mobility, India needs to overcome resource efficiency challenges and create a sustainable electric vehicle ecosystem, which includes securing its supply of rare elements, including lithium. In this article, Mehar Kaur emphasizes the need for domestic manufacturing, battery reuse, and recycling of LIBs.

- Mehar Kaur

Electric mobility has gained momentum in India. Although NITI Aayog’s proposal of selling only electric vehicles after 2030 has been refuted by the government, the general trend is towards cleaner energy use in transportation. 1,2 This push from the government along with the support in the clean energy sector positions India well to take up the challenge of moving towards full electric mobility. The results of the transition can already be observed in the public transport sector, such as the metro and e-rickshaws. The focus of private and public sectors is to push electric vehicles in the public transport sector, including public sharing vehicles, buses, and two- and three-wheelers.

Given the upward trend of electric mobility, it is essential to understand the full life cycle assessment of energy storage used in electric vehicles and develop an efficient, low emission charging infrastructure for the same. A consistent supply of electricity is key to moving towards full electric mobility; however, scaling up charging infrastructure is an issue. In addition, most of the electricity and charging requirements are met by fossil fuels. However, we don’t want to burn coal to save oil. So even though electric vehicles are an efficient technology to reduce CO 2 emissions, net emissions per passenger per kilometer in the electric vehicle sector versus internal combustion (IC) engine should be analysed when transitioning towards electric mobility. To make the full life cycle sustainable, a shift away from fossil fuels and towards cleaner energy solutions, that is, use of solar grid energy storage to provide electricity, is essential.