Enterprises must clarify the economic value of recycling and emphasize the final stage of the NEV value chain—recycling and utilization. This reveals an important trend: competition in the NEV sector has shifted from the first half focused on driving range and intelligence to the second half, which emphasizes refueling efficiency, life cycle costs, and environmental friendliness.

Guotai Environmental Protection convened the 15th meeting of the 4th Board of Directors, reviewing and approving the "Proposal on Amending the Business Scope, Revising the , and Handling Industrial and Commercial Registration Changes." This adjustment not only represents a simple business expansion but also marks a key transformation of this traditional environmental protection enterprise into the field of new energy circular economy.

On February 24, Guotai Environmental Protection held its 15th meeting of the 4th Board of Directors, reviewing and approving the "Proposal on Amending the Business Scope, Revising the , and Handling Industrial and Commercial Registration Changes." This adjustment not only represents a simple business expansion but also marks a critical transformation of this traditional environmental protection enterprise into the field of new energy circular economy—adding businesses such as lithium-ion battery recycling, PV equipment leasing, and battery manufacturing, officially entering the rapidly growing closed-loop of the new energy industry chain. Guotai Environmental Protection's strategic adjustment is not accidental. In recent years, China's new energy vehicle industry has maintained rapid growth. Data shows that in 2025, China's NEV production and sales both achieved nearly 30% growth, with NEVs accounting for 47.9% of new vehicle sales. As early power batteries gradually enter their retirement phase, a massive backend market is accelerating its formation. Power battery recycling involves the collection, processing, and reuse of waste power batteries, aiming to promote resource circulation, protect the ecological environment, and drive long-term industry development. Currently, the standardized recycling rate for waste power batteries in China remains below 50%, with a large number of waste batteries flowing into informal channels such as "small workshops," posing environmental risks and causing the waste of strategic resources. Standardized recycling and utilization of retired power batteries are of great significance for reducing environmental pollution, ensuring the security of national critical metal resources, promoting industrial greening, and enhancing international competitiveness. In February 2025, the State Council Executive Meeting reviewed and passed the "Action Plan for Improving the NEV Power Battery Recycling and Utilization System," explicitly proposing to improve the standard system and achieve standardized, safe, and efficient recycling and utilization of power batteries. Shortly thereafter, six departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment jointly issued the "Interim Measures for the Recycling and Comprehensive Utilization of Waste Power Batteries from New Energy Vehicles," which will take effect on April 1, 2026. This upcoming regulation is regarded by the industry as a "watershed" for the sector. The "Management Measures" establish a "full life cycle" supervision system for power batteries, create a national traceability information platform for NEV power batteries, promote the monitoring of power battery flows and information traceability throughout their life cycle, and clarify the recycling responsibilities of power battery enterprises and NEV producers. This means that power battery recycling will shift from the past "guerrilla" operations to an era of "regular army" engagement. The introduction of the new regulation sets a clear "code of conduct" for the industry, aiming to resolve the structural contradiction between the "segmented" layout of the industry chain and the "full life cycle" management requirements, and to build a closed-loop chain of "production—use—recycling—regeneration."

Recently, the Ecology and Environment Bureau of Fuzhou City, Fujian Province, published a public notice regarding the approval decision on the environmental impact assessment document for the "Power Battery Recycling Comprehensive Utilization Project of a Company in Fujian." Upon completion, the project will be capable of recycling and processing 40,000 tons of waste power batteries annually. This includes the cascading utilization of 12,000 tons of batteries per year and the production of 30,000 tons per year of battery raw materials (copper powder, aluminum powder, electrolytic nickel, high-purity nickel sulfate solution, electrolytic cobalt, high-purity cobalt sulfate solution, crude manganese carbonate, high-purity lithium sulfate solution, and copper sponge, etc.).

Recycling Industry Events This Week (September. 22-27)

Recently, the General Office of the Yancheng Municipal People's Government issued a notice on printing and distributing the Implementation Plan for Promoting the Construction of Yancheng's National Carbon Peak Pilot Project. The document states that it is necessary to promote the large-scale development and utilisation of new energy. Strengthen the management of new energy resources, and enhance the orderly development and rational utilisation of onshore wind power and offshore PV resources. Accelerate the construction of offshore wind power projects and market-oriented grid-connected PV power generation projects, and promote the clean substitution of energy supply and the electrification of energy consumption. Develop hydrogen production from renewable energy, and orderly advance the development of green methanol, green liquid ammonia, bio-natural gas, bio-diesel, bio-jet fuel, and other green fuels. Plan and construct the Yancheng Offshore Energy Island with high standards, explore multi-energy conversion application scenarios, and establish a regional production, trade, and bunkering center for green hydrogen, ammonia, methanol, and bio-jet fuel. Guide new energy power generation enterprises to sign medium and long-term green electricity agreements with users who demand green electricity, and increase the proportion of local green electricity consumption. By 2025, the total installed capacity of renewable energy will exceed 20 million kW. By 2030, the annual power generation from renewable energy will exceed 45 billion kWh, and a comprehensive offshore smart energy island with multiple functions, including hydrogen production and bunkering, marine ranching, and centered around an offshore power hub, will be initially established. Implement demonstration projects for advanced green and low-carbon technologies. Focus on the seven major themes of "wind, solar, hydrogen, energy storage, carbon, ocean, and agriculture" to build the Yancheng Green and Low-Carbon Science and Technology Innovation Park. Plan and construct a zero-carbon and negative-carbon industry (technology) research institute with high standards. Focus on areas such as renewable energy, hydrogen energy, energy storage and smart power grids, and the circular economy, and organize and implement key R&D plans for carbon peaking and carbon neutrality to promote the development of advanced technologies and the application of research outcomes. Support eligible projects to be included in the national demonstration projects for advanced green and low-carbon technologies, and recommend them for application for ultra-long-term special treasury bonds and central budgetary investments. Vigorously develop a green and low-carbon circular economy. Leverage the guiding role of the Yancheng Green and Low-Carbon Industry Mother Fund to expand and strengthen advantageous industries such as new energy, NEVs and core parts, and next-generation information technology. Accelerate the development of characteristic industries such as green environmental protection, and proactively plan for future industries such as hydrogen energy and new-type energy storage. Actively promote the development of remanufacturing and second-life application industries, and establish a material recycling and circular utilisation system with the concept of "one product per county". Explore comprehensive utilisation models for new types of waste, such as retired PV modules, wind turbine blades, and waste power batteries. By 2030, a comprehensive, efficient, and well-regulated waste material utilisation system will be fully established, and the scale of the green and low-carbon industry will reach 500 billion yuan.

On April 29, the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association held a press conference on the economic operation of the nonferrous metals industry in Q1 2025. At the conference, Li Yusheng, Director of the Policy Research Office of the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, responded to questions from a reporter from the *Resource Recycling* magazine regarding the upgrading of the secondary metal industry and the construction of an international resource collaboration system. Li Yusheng introduced that the *Government Work Report* at the 2025 Two Sessions made new arrangements for the continuous deepening of the development of the resource recycling industry, namely, "strengthening the recycling of waste materials, vigorously promoting the use of secondary materials, and promoting the development of the circular economy." The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the Ministry of Finance issued the *Notice on Intensifying and Expanding the Implementation of Large-Scale Equipment Replacement and Consumer Goods Trade-in Policies in 2025*, implementing special actions to promote the application of secondary materials and supporting producers of automobiles, electrical and electronic products, etc., to increase the proportion of secondary materials used. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), in conjunction with multiple departments, issued the *Implementation Plan for High-Quality Development of the Copper Industry (2025-2027)* and the *Implementation Plan for High-Quality Development of the Aluminum Industry (2025-2027)*, proposing to strengthen the processing and distribution capacity of copper and aluminum scrap, promote the standardized recycling and refined sorting of raw materials, encourage the import of qualified secondary copper and aluminum raw materials, support copper smelters and copper and aluminum processing enterprises to increase the proportion of secondary copper and aluminum used, and promote high-value utilization. In terms of encouraging technological innovation, the NDRC and other departments issued the *Green Technology Promotion Catalogue (2024 Edition)*, which includes technologies such as "comprehensive recycling and utilization technology for waste lithium-ion batteries," "comprehensive utilization technology for arsenic-containing waste residues from gold and copper smelting," and "clean recovery technology for valuable components from waste power batteries," among others. Financial institutions are encouraged to strengthen financing support for the application of green technologies listed in the *Catalogue* through green credit, green bonds, carbon emission reduction support tools, etc. Li Yusheng stated that in 2024, China's production of secondary nonferrous metals reached 19.15 million mt, ranking first in the world for 15 consecutive years. The physical content of imported secondary copper and aluminum raw materials exceeded 4 million mt, accounting for 23% of the total supply of raw materials, a decrease of 1.7 percentage points compared to 2023. A raw material supply structure has been basically formed, with domestic recycling as the main source and imports as an important supplement. At the same time, China is actively constructing a more resilient international resource collaboration system to reduce the impact of external risks. 1. Import management policies are continuously improved, and the variety of imported products is increasing. The new version of the announcement on the import management of secondary copper and aluminum raw materials and relevant customs inspection procedures have been implemented since November 2024, adding the import of secondary copper alloys such as brass, bronze, white copper, and high-copper alloys, as well as secondary wrought aluminum alloys and secondary pure aluminum raw materials that meet the index requirements. The announcement on the import management of secondary black mass raw materials for lithium-ion batteries has completed the solicitation of opinions, and secondary black mass raw materials that meet the standards will be included in the category of free imports. In addition, the import management policy for spent target materials after sputtering is also being orderly promoted, aiming to recycle and reuse critical strategic metal resources such as tantalum, cobalt, nickel, tungsten, molybdenum, and vanadium. 2. Establish recycling plants abroad to expand the coverage of the recycling network. Following the establishment of dismantling, sorting, and recycling production lines for secondary nonferrous metal raw materials by Chinese enterprises in Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, and Cambodia, Chinese enterprises have begun to establish sorting plants in countries such as Japan, South Korea, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Indonesia to recycle secondary nonferrous metal resources, greatly expanding the sources of international secondary raw materials and enhancing the resilience of overseas secondary resource supplies. 3. The number of countries from which raw materials are imported has increased, and the sources of secondary raw materials have become more diverse. Taking the import of secondary aluminum raw materials as an example, the number of importing countries and regions has increased to 95, an increase of 6 compared to 2023. The number of countries and regions importing more than 10,000 mt of secondary aluminum has reached 22, an increase of 4 compared to 2023. 4. Customs further optimizes the business environment at ports to facilitate customs clearance. The General Administration of Customs has carried out pilot projects for the transshipment of secondary metal raw materials in inland areas, creating favorable conditions for importing enterprises to reduce transportation and logistics costs and improve customs clearance efficiency. At the same time, it has comprehensively promoted the construction of smart customs and introduced 16 specific measures to "optimize processes, simplify procedures, and improve efficiency," helping enterprises reduce costs, increase vitality, and continuously enhance the level of cross-border trade facilitation.

[Concerning Over 160,000 Related Enterprises! China to Strengthen Power Battery Recycling and Utilization] Currently, power batteries for NEVs in China have entered a large-scale retirement phase, making it particularly important to comprehensively enhance the capacity and level of power battery recycling and utilization. (Battery Network)

[SMM Analysis: A Brief Overview of the New Requirements for the "Recycled Black Mass Standard for Lithium-Ion Batteries"] SMM, February 13: Recently, to facilitate the trade-in work for automobiles in 2025 and make it easier for consumers to apply for subsidies, according to the "Notice on the Trade-In Work for Automobiles in 2025" (Commerce Office Consumer Letter [2025] No. 8, hereinafter referred to as the "Notice") issued by the General Offices of the Ministry of Commerce and seven other departments, the purpose of this revision is to further promote equipment upgrades, expand the scope of support for trade-in of consumer goods, and accelerate the improvement of recycling and reuse levels. The main key points are as follows:

[SMM Analysis: Summary of New Requirements in the "Recycled Black Mass Standard for Lithium-Ion Batteries"] SMM, January 20: Recently, the State Administration for Market Regulation and the Standardization Administration of China issued GB/T 45203-2024 "Recycled Black Mass for Lithium-Ion Batteries." This specification outlines detailed requirements and regulations for the specific chemical composition, inspection and acceptance standards, sampling and sample preparation, as well as packaging and transportation of recycled black mass for lithium-ion batteries. The main highlights are as follows: