Recycling plants in Canada and Rochester, New York, have the capacity to salvage tens of thousands of tons of spent batteries each year, removing waste and aiding the creation of a semi-circular battery economy.

Li-Cycle, borrowing the periodic table's call sign for Lithium, also claims their "Spoke and Hub" proprietary recycling method is cost-effective, allowing battery manufacturers to actually afford recycled material. The batteries, no matter their size or shape, are broken down by a mechanical process that results in two lines of raw materials. The first is the line of cathode and anode waste in a black powder that consists of lithium, nickel, cobalt, graphite, copper, and aluminum. The second is scrap aluminum and copper from the insulating or conducting foils.