Montreal, February 13, 2020 —Propulsion Québec, the cluster for electric and intelligent transportation, announced the start of a study on the issues and best practices for implementing an extended producer responsibility mechanism for end-of-life lithium-ion batteries in the transportation industry in Quebec and in surrounding markets.
The objectives of the study are as follows:
- Consult stakeholders concerned with the issue of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries in the transportation industry;
- Present the elements of the legal framework that govern vehicles and electric vehicle batteries, as well as the collection and transport of lithium-ion batteries in North America;
- Identify the lessons Quebec can draw from the implementation of an extended producer responsibility (EPR) mechanism in other jurisdictions to support the collection of lithium-ion batteries and increase their eventual recycling;
- Provide a high-level analysis of different deployment scenarios for an EPR mechanism to structure the collection and recycling of batteries and to understand their advantages and disadvantages.
A steering committee is supporting the conduct of the study, which will be carried out by the firm EY. The results will be unveiled in spring 2020.
Quotes
"The rapid growth of the electric vehicle market will result in the massive arrival, within about ten years, of end-of-life batteries. The battery recycling market presents an interesting business opportunity and a significant challenge, given the potential pool of end-of-life batteries that can be captured in Canada and the U.S. Northeast. We want to see what is being done elsewhere and tackle this imminent issue head-on, given the current enthusiasm for electric vehicles in Quebec," said Sarah Houde, President and CEO of Propulsion Québec.
"End-of-life batteries are both an environmental challenge and an economic opportunity, given their potential for recovery. We must find the right balance between the development of the electric transportation industrial sector while ensuring responsible and optimal management of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries, and this study will make it possible to work with the concerned stakeholders to consider the regulatory mechanism to put in place," she concluded.
The financial partners of the study are: the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, the Ministry of the Environment and the Fight Against Climate Change, RECYC-QUÉBEC, Call2Recycle Canada, the Association of Auto and Truck Parts Recyclers, Hydro-Québec, Recyclage Lithion, Nemaska Lithium, Nouveau Monde Graphite and Mason Graphite.
