ELVES Electric Loops project receives EPA funding

ELVES, the compliance scheme for End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) in Ireland, has been awarded Green Enterprise funding from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its Electric Loops project.

This project is set to investigate the reuse and recycling potential of electric vehicles as a circular economy initiative.

Under the Electric Loops project, ELVES says an electric vehicle will be dismantled and its parts evaluated to understand their value for reuse and recycling, helping to create a future circular economy.

The project will help Authorised Treatment Facilities (ATFs or permitted scrapyards) and metal recyclers to create the reuse and recycling avenues needed for the End-of-life Vehicles of the future.

It is set to start this month and run till late 2024.

ELVES chief executive Fiacra Quinn said the volume of electric vehicles coming to end-of-life is expected to “significantly increase”, and the ELV recycling industry needs to be prepared for this change.

“This project will provide important data enabling the recycling industry to capture the value in the recycling of these vehicles.

“It will also help Irish authorities to report on the levels of reuse and recycling undertaken,” he added.

ELVES has operated its Electric ELVES programme since 2018, which provides take back and recycling of electric vehicle batteries, as well as training and information support on the handling of electric and hybrid vehicles.