Cox Automotive Surpasses Major EV Battery Recycling Milestone

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Mar 12, 2026, 14:00 ET

EV Battery Solutions recovers more than 10 million pounds of black mass, keeping critical battery minerals in circulation and advancing a more circular EV future

ATLANTA, March 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Cox Automotive today announced a major milestone in EV battery recycling: its EV Battery Solutions business has processed and recovered more than 10 million pounds of black mass, material containing valuable minerals that can be refined and reused to help produce new batteries.

The milestone underscores Cox Automotive's growing role in managing the full EV battery lifecycle, from safe handling and logistics to repair, remanufacturing, and end-of-life recycling, helping customers and communities scale electrification more responsibly.

An operator performs a voltage test with a multimeter as part of a safety inspection.

An operator monitors material flow and inspects output quality as black mass moves into storage.

Why This Matters

More EVs are entering the used market. EVs represented about 5% of lease maturities in 2025 and are expected to exceed 12% in 2026, with projections reaching ~23% by 2028, meaning more EV batteries will require safe service, second-life pathways, and responsible recycling.
Batteries shouldn't end up in landfills. Circular recycling helps keep materials in productive use and supports a more sustainable battery supply chain.
"Battery lifecycle" is becoming a mainstream operational need. As the used EV ecosystem grows, safe diagnostics, handling, and end-of-life pathways are essential to protect people, facilities, and surrounding communities.

A Broader Battery Lifecycle Approach

Recycling is one part of Cox Automotive's strategy to extend EV battery life through repair, refurbishment, remanufacturing, and, when necessary, recycling. EV Battery Solutions' proprietary depowering and dry-shredding technologies help minimize fire risk and support safer processing, helping protect employees, facilities, and surrounding communities.

"This milestone is proof that circularity in the EV battery ecosystem is moving from concept to scale," said Brian Skalovsky, director of battery recycling for EV Battery Solutions by Cox Automotive. "Every pound we recover represents valuable materials kept in circulation, and a more responsible path forward as more EVs enter the used market."

"This is about building the infrastructure that makes electrification work in the real world," said Lea Malloy, vice president of EV Battery Solutions by Cox Automotive. "By extending battery life through repair and remanufacturing, and responsibly recycling at the end of life, we're helping close the loop for electric mobility."

How Cox Automotive Recycles EV Batteries in Oklahoma City

At Cox Automotive's battery recycling center in Oklahoma City, technicians use a patented dry recycling process designed to eliminate water and chemical treatments and reduce environmental impact. Through mechanical disassembly, shredding and air-based separation, the team extracts high-value materials for reuse, achieving up to 94% material recovery.

About Black Mass

Black mass is the dark, powder-like material produced when lithium-ion batteries are mechanically processed for recycling. It contains valuable battery materials, often including lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese, that can be refined and reintegrated into new battery manufacturing, reducing reliance on virgin mining.

Cox Conserves: Enterprise Sustainability Commitment

This milestone supports Cox Enterprises' sustainability commitment through Cox Conserves—the company's environmental program focused on leaving a better planet for future generations. Since its founding in 2007, Cox Conserves has funded more than 500 sustainability projects, including 70 alternative energy initiatives, with more than $165 million invested to help reduce waste, conserve energy and water, and promote biodiversity. Read more in Cox Enterprises' latest Impact Report.

EV Battery Solutions by Cox Automotive

Cox Automotive supports practices that enable the extension of EV battery first lives and end-of-life reuse and recovery treatments. This includes a variety of storage, logistics, diagnostics, repair and remanufacturing services being conducted at the company's global EV battery service facilities in Oklahoma City, Okla., Belleville, Mich., Las Vegas, Conyers, Ga., Ede, Netherlands, Rugby, U.K., as well as select Manheim operating locations.

For more information about Cox Automotive EV Battery Solutions, visit https://www.coxautoinc.com/ev-battery-solutions/.

About Cox Automotive

Cox Automotive is the world's largest automotive services and technology provider. Fueled by the largest breadth of first-party data fed by 2.3 billion online interactions a year, Cox Automotive tailors leading solutions for car shoppers, auto manufacturers, dealers, lenders and fleets. The company has 29,000+ employees on five continents and a portfolio of industry-leading brands that include Autotrader®, Kelley Blue Book®, Manheim®, vAuto®, Dealertrack®, NextGear Capital™, CentralDispatch® and Cox Fleet®. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises Inc., a privately owned, Atlanta-based company with $23 billion in annual revenue. Visit coxautoinc.com or connect via @CoxAutomotive on X, CoxAutoInc on Facebook or Cox-Automotive-Inc on LinkedIn.

SOURCE Cox Automotive