Recell.store and Zenith partner
Recell.store, the UK’s first online marketplace for used EV batteries and an Altilium company, has today announced a partnership with Zenith, the UK’s largest independent truck-to-car vehicle leasing and fleet management company, to develop a comprehensive solution for the safe and sustainable disposal of fleet damaged and end-of-life EV batteries.
The agreement underlines both companies’ commitment to supporting the UK’s transition to net zero and the decarbonisation of the automotive industry. Zenith is already committed to eliminating tailpipe emissions and through this new initiative will work with recell.store to deliver further carbon savings.
Under the terms of the MOU, recell.store will collaborate closely with Zenith to manage batteries retired from the company’s growing fleet of electric vehicles. By maximising reuse, repurposing and recycling of these batteries in line with UK’s Waste Hierarchy principles, the partnership aims to accelerate the growth of a circular economy for battery materials in the UK, reducing the environmental impact of battery waste.
BEVs currently make up nearly 50% (28,417 vehicles) of Zenith’s corporate and consumer funded fleet and 100% of its colleague car fleet. With around 100 BEV write-offs a year, the partnership addresses the growing issue of how to ensure the safe and ethical disposal of EV batteries.
"We're so excited to be partnering with Zenith to build the foundations of a circular economy for EV batteries in the UK. Together, we're making it easier and safer for fleet owners to handle EV battery disposal responsibly and meet their ESG requirements, while unlocking second-life value and reducing environmental impact."
Rod Savage, Head of Operations at recell.store
As part of the initiative, used batteries from Zenith’s fleet will be managed through recell.store’s digital platform, enabling second-life applications where suitable. Batteries that can no longer be repurposed will be responsibly recycled at parent company Altilium’s state-of-the-art battery recycling facilities in Devon, helping to recover critical materials such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel for reuse in the EV battery supply chain.
As sales of EVs continues to grow, so too will the need for responsible management of end-of-life batteries. According to McKinsey, over 100 million batteries are expected to be retired in the next decade.
By partnering with OEMs, salvage yards and fleet owners, recell.store is ensuring efficient and safe reuse, repurposing and recycling of these batteries.
Furthermore, by recovering the critical materials such as lithium and nickel from battery waste, Altilium is creating a sustainable domestic supply chain for the battery metals essential for the UK’s transition to a clean transport future.
Altilium’s proprietary EcoCathode™ recycling process can recover over 95% of the cathode metals from EV battery waste, in a format that can be directly reused in battery manufacturing, with up to 74% lower GHG emissions compared to mined materials and 20% lower costs.
"Finding a safe and ethical way to dispose of batteries addresses a current and growing issue in our sector. This partnership ensures we have the foundations in place to enable us to manage the asset responsibly on behalf of our customer, while setting standards within the industry.”
Alan Bastey, Decarbonisation and Sustainability Consultant at Zenith
