There is currently no infrastructure to support li-ion battery recycling in sub-Saharan Africa. Logistical complexity and associated costs make it difficult for solar distributors and recyclers to send batteries abroad. As a result, companies store stockpiles of Li-ion batteries at their end-of-life. On top of that, battery operation is dependent on the weakest cell in the pack, if one cell fails, the whole battery pack fails and is considered non-functional. Currently, companies discard all battery cells when the product reaches its end-of-life (EoL).
Within the framework of the Global LEAP Awards Solar E-Waste Challenge, supported by USAID, LAGAZEL will implement an innovative project that aims to facilitate sustainable e-waste management of used batteries from the solar sector. In Burkina Faso and then in Benin, the objective is to reuse end-of-life lithium battery cells in second life battery packs and integrate an innovative battery management system (BMS) to enable individual cell usage and management. The project will create a productive use for the stockpiles of Li-ion batteries discarded by the off-grid solar sector in West Africa.
To face technical barriers, LAGAZEL benefits from the support of the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA). LAGAZEL will also partner with distributors and local players in recycling, for example the Association Burkinabè pour la Promotion des Emplois Verts (APBEV), in order to collect cylindrical batteries in appropriate conditions. Anyone who has interest in this topic can contact LAGAZEL, who needs any support to perform successfully this innovative project.
