Leading The Charge - Turning risk into reward with a circular economy for EV batteries and critical minerals, a white paper published by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation during the 2026 World Economic Forum, is the first integrated, actionable roadmap for a circular value chain for EV batteries based on real-world industrial practice.
It is also an important milestone in the collaboration between CATL and the Foundation.
The report was developed with input from over 30 leading organizations from across the EV battery ecosystem - including CATL $3750 (-1,37 %), DHL $DHL (+0,78 %), Volvo $VOLV A (+0,03 %) and JLR, as well as research institutions and NGOs - and provides clear, industry-focused direction on how EV batteries need to be designed, used, recovered and recycled to maximize their value and reduce systemic risks across the value chain.
As a strategic founding partner of the Foundation's Critical Minerals Mission, CATL worked closely with the Foundation and industry peers to translate circular economy principles into practical, actionable measures based on real-world operational experience. The roadmap also supports CATL's global commitment to the circular economy in energy, including its long-term goal of decoupling battery market growth from the extraction of new raw materials.
It highlights the environmental, economic, product development and overall value creation opportunities that a circular EV battery system can provide.
By reusing batteries and their critical minerals over multiple life cycles, the need for newly mined materials is reduced, emissions are lowered and the integration of renewable energy is promoted. It also increases economic value by improving material efficiency, reducing waste and operating costs and creating new revenue streams. At the same time, it strengthens supply chain resilience and distributes economic benefits more equitably across regions, demonstrating that a systemic, circular approach transforms potential risks into strategic, value-creating opportunities.
》Five bright spots for a circular EV battery system《
The white paper identifies five interlinked actions required to keep battery materials in high-quality use and strengthen the resilience of the system:
● Design batteries for the circular economy, not for disposal
● Rethink battery service within optimized energy mobility systems
● Scaling circular business models that treat batteries as long-term assets
● Building regional circular infrastructures and co-investing in them
● Enabling a circular operating system through data, standards and guidelines
》CATL measures already in practice《
CATL is already implementing these measures at system level in all its operations. By separating the battery from the vehicle, CATL manages batteries as centrally managed assets, increasing utilization, enabling scheduled maintenance and ensuring a predictable end-of-life return on investment.
Today, CATL operates more than 1,000 swap stations for passenger cars and over 300 for commercial vehicles, supported by a growing ecosystem of more than 100 partners.
This system integration enables high-quality recovery on a large scale. CATL's recycling activities achieve recovery rates of 99.6% for nickel, cobalt and manganese and 96.5% for lithium, with processing capacity expanding to 270,000 tons per year.
In parallel, CATL is deploying alternative chemistries such as sodium-ion batteries, using widely available materials and reducing lifecycle carbon emissions per kilowatt-hour by up to 60%, improving circular performance in the mobility, exchange and energy storage sectors.
》Scaling together《
At the Foundation's Leadership Briefing, Jiang Li, Vice Chairman and Board Secretary of CATL, emphasized: "This report marks an important milestone in the global journey towards a circular economy for batteries. Circular battery systems now need to be scaled across regions, industries and applications - from electric vehicles to energy storage - and adapted to different market contexts."
"With the increasing adoption of electric vehicles, a circular economy for batteries and critical minerals is no longer optional - it is essential for affordability, resilience and long-term growth while reducing environmental and social impacts," said Wen-Yu Weng, Executive Leader for Critical Minerals at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. "EV batteries are strategic assets, and circular approaches are key to preserving their value and ensuring that critical minerals never become waste. We welcome CATL's contribution and look forward to continuing to work together to scale a truly circular battery system and support the wider energy transition."
For CATL, this agenda directly underpins its journey to carbon neutrality - building on the achievement of carbon neutrality at all its battery plants and its goal to achieve carbon neutrality across the value chain by 2035.
The publication of the report marks a first milestone in the broader collaboration between CATL and the Foundation to accelerate the circular economy for critical minerals. The next phase will focus on testing these approaches in real-world settings to understand how design, use, life extension, collection and recycling loops interact at scale




