The engineering cost of overseas recycling lines for end-of-life lithium-ion batteries is significantly higher than that of conventional projects. This is primarily due to the systemic requirements related to technical standards, service models, and industrial supporting facilities in project locations such as Europe, the Middle East, and South America. The main contributing factors are as follows:
Core equipment—especially electrical control systems—must obtain CE certification. Engineering design, construction and installation, commissioning and training, as well as steel structures, mechanical platforms, instruments, civil works, environmental protection, fire safety, energy consumption, and pipe racks must all comply with relevant European/EU standards.
Equipment can only be shipped and paid for after wiring and trial-run acceptance have been completed. In addition, multiple spare sets of key one-time-use components must be provided.
Projects commonly adopt the EPC turnkey contracting model, covering the entire chain from design and procurement to construction and commissioning. This significantly increases overall management complexity and cost.
Transportation relies mainly on sea freight, supplemented by rail transport. Cross-border logistics coordination and transport expenses are therefore considerably higher.
Due to the lack of a well-developed local industrial ecosystem, projects must be equipped with additional specialized auxiliary units—such as small-scale fluoride-containing wastewater treatment systems and fluoride sludge filter-press equipment—which further increase capital expenditure.
Multiple sets of spare parts must be prepared in advance, and after-sales maintenance response times must be kept within one to two weeks. Moreover, suppliers are often required to provide one to two years of entrusted operation services after project completion.
The black mass, copper, aluminum, and other recycled outputs must meet China’s import standards for renewable resources and be compatible with downstream processing channels in China, adding complexity to process design and quality control.
From an economic perspective, in regions such as Europe, spent lithium-ion batteries are classified as hazardous waste, and treatment fees range from €3,000 to €5,000 per ton. At the same time, revenue can be generated from selling black mass, copper, and aluminum, giving projects a degree of investment security. Consequently, local engineering firms apply high standards comparable to hazardous-waste treatment and international engineering projects across R&D, design, manufacturing, installation, commissioning, transportation, and after-sales service—substantially increasing total project costs, in some cases by several multiples.
