Rare Earth Recycling Development Will Accelerate in 2022 Through the Duet of Waste Motor Dismantling and Scrap Recycling

SHANGHAI, Mar 14 (SMM) - Domestic output of praseodymium neodymium (PrNd) oxide exceeded 70,000  mt, and that attributable to the recycling industry reached 23,000 mt, accounting for 30% of the total output.

In 2022, the first batch of light rare earth mining quota saw limited increase in the mining indicators, and the middle and heavy rare earth mines in the south have not yet been fully exploited. The opening of the China-Myanmar border has been delayed, and imported middle and heavy rare earth ores will not be available for the moment. In contrast, driven by the expansion of large-scale NdFeB magnetic material companies, the rare earth recycling industry has been growing steadily.

It is reported that the gross annual capacity of the four major magnetic material enterprises achieved a growth of 29,000 mt or more than 30% year-on-year. It is expected to contribute 5,800 mt of NdFeB scrap to the rare earth recycling market in 2022. Some recyclers also expanded their capacity accordingly. It is estimated that the rare earth recycling market will be able to supply 28,000 mt of PrNd oxide in 2022.

In addition to NdFeB scrap, the dismantling of used motors is also a major source for the recycling market.

In 2021, about 15,000 mt of oxide was recovered from NdFeB scrap, accounting for 65% of the output of the recycling industry; about 8,000 mt was produced from the dismantling of waste motors, accounting for the remaining 35%.

In the waste motor dismantling market, two-wheeled electric vehicles (EVs) account for the largest proportion. In 2021, the dismantling of two-wheeled EVs created 6,000 mt of PrNd oxide, accounting for 26% of the entire recycling industry. The service life of two-wheeled EVs is generally four to five years, and the those produced in 2016 will soon be dismantled and eliminated. In 2016, the output of two-wheeled EVs in China alone stood at 30.8 million units; and from 2016 to 2020, the average annual output exceeded 30 million units. Due to the large number of scrapped motors, the dismantling of two-wheeled EV’s motors accounts for a relatively high proportion in the entire recycling market.

In 2021, the dismantling of wind turbines will contributed 1,900 mt of PrNd oxide, accounting for 8% of the output of the recycling market. The service life of wind turbines is usually 15-20 years. The first batch of wind turbines installed around the world in 2001 is about to be dismantled and recycled. It is expected that the scrap dismantling market will produce at least 11,900 mt of PrNd oxide.

In November 2021, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the Motor Energy Efficiency Improvement Plan, which plans to strengthen the dismantling and recycling of waste motors. From 2022 to 2025, the growth rate of the domestic waste motor dismantling market is set to accelerate.

It is estimated that in 2022, the supply of PrNd oxide from waste motors will reach 10,000 mt, and the output from wind turbine dismantling will record a growth rate of more than 10%. The largest proportion is still taken by the dismantling of two-wheeled EVs. As new energy vehicles gradually reach their end of service life, it is estimated that the rare earth recycling market will expand further through the dismantling of new energy vehicles in 2023.