While Toyota (M.T.) – Get a free report Although confident in its view that the mass market is not yet ready for electric vehicles, instead citing the value of hybrids, the company is not left out of the electric vehicle revolution.
The company in May he said that will make three new all-electric SUVs at its Kentucky plant starting in 2025. One component of this increase in electric vehicle production, the company said at the time, involved more investments in its North Carolina battery plant, which will begin production in 2025.
With that production date quickly approaching, the automaker enhanced its partnership with Redwood Materials in a move Thursday designed to strengthen the company’s battery supply chain.
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The deal builds on a collaboration first announced last year for battery collection and recycling and, according to Toyota, aims to create avenues for Toyota electric vehicle batteries that have reached the end of their useful life.
Christopher Yang, vice president of Toyota North America group, said in a statement that the deal will bring Toyota closer to its goal of creating a “closed-loop battery ecosystem.”
Such an ecosystem, he said, will be “increasingly important as we add more battery-powered vehicles to North American roads.”
“By working with Redwood Materials, we are creating a circular supply chain to optimize logistics, expand refining and ensure that recovered valuable metals can be reintroduced into our future vehicles,” he said.
As Toyota looks to expand its electric offering and its first-generation hybrids reach the end of their life cycle, the company will require much more in terms of battery recycling, as well as new battery production.
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The new framework will feed recycled materials (cathode active material (CAM) and copper foil) from the Redwood facility for the production of new batteries at Toyota’s $14 billion North Carolina battery plant.
“It is anticipated that the use of recycled materials will help increase the focus and relevance of domestic supply chains versus the current extensive and carbon-intensive supply chain of procurement outside the United States,” Toyota said in a statement.
The company said its battery ecosystem will include recycling, remanufacturing and reusing approximately five million units, an effort that will contribute to its carbon neutrality goals.
Redwood, founded in 2017 by Tesla (TSLA) – Get a free report Co-founder JB Straubel has raised $2 billion so far, reaching a valuation of $5.25 billion. The company’s goal is to create circular and sustainable battery supply chains as electrification efforts continue to ramp up.
Toyota shares, which are up about 39% for the year, rose slightly on Thursday.
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