The reduction of inflation act signed by President Joe Biden earlier this month, puts the U.S. on track to meet its carbon reduction goals, in part by boosting the electric car market. It also plunged that same market into short-term chaos, forcing entire supply chains to be restructured in just a few years.
The catalyst is the IRA’s steep requirements around where automakers can shop for critical battery materials if they want to qualify for the $7,500 Clean Vehicle Tax Credit. China, which is the largest producer of such supplies in the world, is not on the list.
As a result, many in the industry are turning their heads to battery recycling companies, which promise to supply automakers with at least some of the materials they will need in the coming years to produce the wave of electric cars coming to market. This space has already been viewed a significant recent VC investmentespecially since millions of tons of lithium-ion batteries are expected to be retired by 2030.
The new legislation sent a signal to recyclers, battery manufacturers and car manufacturers that 2030 is not soon enough.