Beyond just pushing electric vehicles (EV), BMW Group Malaysia is looking at the holistic ecosystem, as part of its circularity philosophy, covering the possible reuse, repurpose and/or recycling of plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and EV batteries, including second life programmes.
“We’re looking into several projects and topics – recycling is a big topic, so that’s something that we want to try and establish in a very authentic manner here. We already have partners that we work with in that space, but I think driving it forward a little bit more, the second life projects are something that the group is very passionate about,” said BMW Group Malaysia corporate communications and sustainability head Sashi Ambi.
Citing the BMW Brilliance joint-venture in China, which in 2022 established a closed loop for the reuse of raw materials from PHEV and EV batteries, he said: “if we can find something for Malaysia and the region, I think that’s something that (will also be of) value not just for the group but for the entire automotive industry.”
In China, BMW Brilliance works with a local recycler to dismantle retired batteries and recover from their cells a large proportion of nickel, lithium and cobalt, which are then used to produce new battery cells for the BMW Group, cutting CO2 emissions by 70%.
“We look at the entire circularity – from the time we start developing a car, the team already has in mind what materials to use so that we can recycle and reuse them; (for instance), the alloys on MINIs are recycled aluminium and the seats are made from recycled materials. Over the next few years, (recycling) will be a more and more important global topic because resources are scarce,” BMW Group Malaysia MD Benjamin Nagel said.
Regarding second life programmes, where batteries are reused or repurposed whole, Sashi said: “We have plug-in hybrids since 2013 (and therefore their batteries), (for) BEVs not yet, but in the future you’ll see this.”
“It’s best to set up understanding or an ecosystem of that, and there are already players in the market that are already looking at this. The Malaysian government has a strong mandate in this direction and if we can cooperate to establish something like this, we are open to it,” he added.
“In Malaysia, the era of the EV really started two, three, four years ago. It’s ramping up, and there will be a phase when these cars, the first ones, are at the end of their life cycle after 10, 15, 20 years, depending on the car, or you get accidents and the car can’t be used anymore, so we need to be prepared,” Nagel chipped in.
For now in Malaysia, these batteries could have possible second lives as part of a battery energy storage system (BESS) – where they could be used to power EV chargers in remote locations without a direct power supply – or as a backup for EV chargers, although Sashi admitted that “at the moment, we’re not even at the tipping point.”
“A lot of the charging point operators (CPO) understand this, but I think as they ramp up, this could be a solution. The most important thing is to have close partnerships with not just the automakers, but also CPOs and the government, so that there’s a clear understanding of how this concept would work,” he said, adding that such a move would benefit the entire ecosystem.
“The good thing is, since 2013 when we globally launched the i3, we have experience of the car batteries on the road, and we see how durable the batteries are. After 12 years, the cars are still on the road and they are fully in use.
“(In Malaysia) the German ambassador is driving one, very happily every day, so we see that our batteries last long, and that’s a good thing so we can reuse or repurpose them and if not, recycle them and use the materials for future generations of batteries,” Nagel said.
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