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JLR-backed battery recycling project gets UK government funding

An EV battery recycling project backed by Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has received British government funding to recover critical minerals from end-of-life batteries, start-up Mint Innovation said on Thursday. The project to recover lithium, nickel and cobalt from used batteries is part of the £2.5bn (R59.96bn) DRIVE35 programme the UK department for business and trade launched on Sunday to support the transition to electric cars. Why it's important Britain plans to phase out sales of new petrol and diesel cars by 2035. But globally demand for EVs has fallen behind expectations, with consumers citing high upfront costs as the main barrier. By the numbers The lithium-ion battery project will be in Britain's West Midlands and run for three years, Mint Innovation said. The cleantech company's project is backed by Tata Motors' unit JLR, LiBatt Recycling and the Warwick Manufacturing Group department of the University of Warwick. It has secured £8.1m (R194.18m) in funding, including £4.05m (R97m) from the government's Advanced Propulsion Centre UK. Britain's DRIVE35 will commit £2bn (R47.94bn) in funding to 2030 and an additional £500m (R11.98bn) for research and development to 2035 to support job creation and EV innovation, the department for business and trade said. Key quote 'Our advanced processes aim to not only deliver high-quality materials ... but also help to reduce our reliance on virgin materials,' said Beth Johnston, assistant professor at the University of Warwick. Context In April, Britain softened its demands on automakers to shift to EV production, seeking to alleviate pressure on an industry already reeling from US import tariffs. In June, JLR trimmed its fiscal 2026 margin forecast due to slowing global auto demand, months after shelving plans to build EVs at a new $1bn (R17.89bn) Tata factory in southern India.