Battery Recycling Market

The global battery recycling market size was USD 24.60 Billion in 2025 and is expected to register a revenue CAGR of 10.8% during the forecast period. Market revenue growth is supported by expansion across every major battery chemistry recycling category simultaneously, not lithium-ion alone. In January 2026, Gravita India, a company with a long-standing lead-acid battery recycling business, announced its entry into lithium-ion battery recycling through a new facility at Mundra in Gujarat, extending its recycling operations into a chemistry the company had not previously processed at scale. Umicore reported a strong first-quarter 2026 performance in its Recycling Business Group, supported by high activity levels and favourable metal-market conditions, while American Battery Technology Company reported record quarterly revenue in February 2026 as it expanded both critical-mineral manufacturing and battery recycling operations. Every battery that reaches end-of-life across every chemistry, lead-acid, lithium-ion, and nickel-based, represents recoverable material value, and recyclers with established processing infrastructure and permitting in one chemistry are increasingly extending into others rather than remaining single-chemistry specialists. These are some of the key factors driving revenue growth of the market.

Lead-acid, lithium-ion, nickel-based, and other battery chemistries are the categories that constitute the battery recycling market, processed through pyrometallurgical, hydrometallurgical, and mechanical or physical recycling routes by a mix of long-established lead recyclers and newer lithium-ion-focused entrants. For instance, in May 2026, Ecobat completed the sale of its battery recycling and specialty lead operations in Germany and Austria to Clarios, a transaction that consolidated lead-acid recycling capacity in those markets under a single automotive battery manufacturer with direct downstream demand for recycled lead. Lead-acid accounts for the largest share of battery recycling market revenue because lead-acid batteries have the longest-established, highest-volume recycling infrastructure of any battery chemistry, built over decades to support automotive and industrial replacement battery cycles, and the large majority of a lead-acid battery's lead content can be recovered and reused in new battery production.

However, lithium-ion battery recycling has proven substantially harder to scale profitably than lead-acid recycling, illustrated by Li-Cycle entering creditor protection in Canada and the United States in May 2025 despite having closed a USD 475 million loan from the US Department of Energy in November 2024, and Ascend Elements filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April 2026 after federal grant cancellations removed more than USD 480 million in expected funding for its Kentucky facility. Recycling economics across every chemistry remain sensitive to recovered metal prices, lead for lead-acid recycling and lithium, nickel, and cobalt for lithium-ion recycling, which move with volatile global commodity markets largely outside any individual recycler's control. Battery collection infrastructure also varies significantly by chemistry and region, with lead-acid benefiting from decades-old, well-established collection and core exchange systems that lithium-ion recycling has not yet fully replicated, particularly for consumer electronics and smaller-format batteries. These factors substantially limit battery recycling market growth over the forecast period.

Based on battery chemistry, the global battery recycling market is segmented into lead-acid, lithium-ion, nickel-based, and other chemistries. The lead-acid segment commands the largest revenue share because it benefits from the longest-established, highest-volume recycling infrastructure of any battery chemistry, with Ecobat, Clarios, Exide, and other major recyclers operating smelting and secondary lead production facilities that have processed automotive and industrial lead-acid battery scrap for decades, giving the segment a mature, high-recovery-rate processing base that lithium-ion recycling has not yet matched.

The lithium-ion segment is expected to register a rapid revenue growth rate in the global battery recycling market over the forecast period. Gravita India's January 2026 entry into lithium-ion battery recycling through its new Mundra, Gujarat facility, and American Battery Technology Company's record quarterly revenue reported in February 2026 as it expanded both critical-mineral manufacturing and battery recycling operations, illustrate how lithium-ion recycling is attracting both established lead-acid recyclers diversifying into the chemistry and dedicated lithium-ion recyclers scaling their existing operations simultaneously.

• 01What is the global battery recycling market size in 2025 and what CAGR is expected during 2026-2035?
• 02What lithium-ion recycling facility did Gravita India open in January 2026, and why is it significant that a lead-acid recycler made this move?
• 03What lead-acid recycling operations did Ecobat sell to Clarios in May 2026?
• 04What results did Umicore's Recycling Business Group report for the first quarter of 2026?
• 05What record did American Battery Technology Company report in February 2026?
• 06Why does the lead-acid segment hold the largest revenue share despite faster growth in lithium-ion recycling?
• 07Why has lithium-ion battery recycling proven harder to scale profitably than lead-acid recycling?
• 08What happened to Li-Cycle and Ascend Elements, and what does their financial distress suggest about lithium-ion recycling economics?
• 09How does battery collection infrastructure differ between lead-acid and lithium-ion recycling?
• 10Why might an established lead-acid recycler have structural advantages when entering lithium-ion recycling compared with a pure-play startup?

This report covers the global battery recycling market across all major battery chemistries, recycling processes, sources, and geographic regions. Primary research combines panel conversations with industry experts and is cross-referenced against company financial disclosures and government agency data. All market size figures use 2025 as the base year with a 2026-2035 forecast period.