U.S. Gov Pledges $63M for Battery Recycling, Smart Manufacturing

WASHINGTON, D.C.- In support of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced the availability of up to $63 million to enable state and local governments to expand battery recycling and modernize American manufacturing by making cutting edge technologies like advanced sensors and modeling more accessible to small- and medium-sized manufacturers (SMMs). Administered by DOE’s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC), this funding opportunity advances next-generation tools and resources to achieve the Biden-Harris Administration’s ambitious goal of a net-zero economy by 2050 and will help revitalize and strengthen America’s global leadership in manufacturing.

“America’s revolutionary clean energy future requires a modernized manufacturing sector, and the Biden-Harris Administration is helping us get there,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “The funding announced today will equip small- and medium-sized manufacturers with cutting edge technologies to improve operations efficiency and expand battery recycling, removing barriers to advancement and bolstering the nation’s competitive standing.”

Battery Recycling

Batteries power our daily lives. Collecting spent batteries and recovering critical minerals like cobalt, lithium and graphite from battery recycling is a cost effective and sustainable way to source domestic materials to produce more batteries. Working with states and local governments, this funding will create new recycling programs for recycling and collection points that are easily accessible to consumers, whether at a retail location or a community site such as a library.

This funding opportunity includes $41 million for the second phase of $50 million in total provided by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for state and local government battery recycling programming. In the first phase, DOE selected battery recycling projects for negotiation that are expected to catalyze over $14.4 million in public/private investment. This second phase will boost state and local governments’ ability to support state-wide and local battery recycling programs. DOE is seeking projects in partnership with state and local governments to create new or enhance existing battery collection, recycling, and reprocessing projects, with an additional focus on awareness, education, and community benefits.

Smart Manufacturing

In addition to working with state and local governments to enhance battery collection, DOE is also partnering with states to modernize the domestic manufacturing sector by enhancing access to cutting edge technologies.

Smart manufacturing refers to the use of emerging and advanced technologies to increase the efficiency of the traditional manufacturing process. By adopting smart manufacturing technologies, firms can lower costs, increase energy efficiency and performance, reduce material demand, and improve product quality, making American firms more competitive in a global marketplace. However, the majority of SMMs currently do not employ smart manufacturing or high-performance computing technologies, largely due to high upfront costs and lack of access to training resources. Through this program, DOE is working to close that gap.

Public Release.