Electric vehicles get cleaner than gas cars in 15,000 miles as battery recycling picks up

According to a new study that takes the current battery recycling rates into account, electric vehicles become greener to drive than gas cars much sooner than thought.

Previous calculations pegged an EV in the US becoming cleaner from an environmental standpoint after about 25,000 miles of driving. That is when their upfront emissions associated with battery production break even, but the mileage varies for each region.

When taking into consideration their current battery recycling pace, though, electric vehicles actually become cleaner than gas cars after just 15,000 miles, or about a year of average driving in the US.

Previously, the analysis only included emissions inherent to extracting raw battery materials and operating electric cars, including their charging at the current energy mix.

Companies like Redwood Materials of Tesla's co-founder JB Straubel, however, are now able to recycle and reuse 95% of the expensive metals that have been extracted and refined to make an EV battery.

Toyota recently partnered with Redwood for a closed loop of supply, giving it its old hybrid car batteries to be recycled into electrode materials for new cells.

This process essentially lowers the emissions of EV battery production by 55% and the energy that would have gone to extract them by 80% according to Stanford researchers.

When accounting for the localized nature of recycling of US-based companies like Redwood, the total reduction of EV battery production emissions is up to 80%.

This is compared to nickel-based batteries that electric vehicles like the new Tesla Model 3 Performance use, not the phosphate cells that go into its base RWD sibling.

The era of mass recycling of EV batteries is just beginning, though, as a lot of them are still in warranty. According to JB Straubel, modern packs can power the vehicle for 15 years before they degrade enough to warrant recycling, and anecdotal evidence shows that he might have a point. 

Coincidentally, the world's largest battery maker CATL recently entered a partnership with NIO to officialize 15-year EV battery warranty at 85% capacity retention. Currently, most EV makers give an 8-year warranty and 70% retention guarantee, which decimates resale value.

The CEO of NIO estimated that there will be more than 20 million electric cars coming out of warranty in the next few years, so the 15-year warranty push will be vital to sustain the industry going forward.

A lot of those vehicles' batteries will be recycled, too, greening up the production and use of electric cars compared to gas vehicles even further.

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