Study finds battery recycling could halve EU demand for newly mined lithium by 2040

A study by Germany's Öko-Institut, commissioned by campaign groups SOMO, Seas At Risk and PowerShift, finds that recycling could cut the EU's need for newly mined lithium and nickel by up to 50% by 2040, and cobalt by up to 70%. Sciaena and 39 other organisations are urging Brussels to act quickly to realise that potential. Portugal holds some of Europe's largest known lithium resources, and plans for new mines are contentious: residents of Covas do Barroso have blocked company machinery in protest at the Savannah Resources project. The groups say Europe should reduce extraction rather than simply seek new sources.