LG Electronics is continuing its 'Battery Return' campaign, which recycles used batteries from cordless vacuum cleaners to recover rare metals. Since its launch in 2022, the campaign has collected approximately 340,000 batteries, recovering over 13 tons of rare metals such as nickel, lithium, and cobalt, expanding beyond a one-time collection event into a resource recycling system.
On October 1, LG Electronics announced the second phase of this year's Battery Return campaign, which will run until November 30. Customers can return used batteries from cordless vacuum cleaners to LG service centers nationwide, regardless of the manufacturer. For those unable to visit a service center, online participation through the brand's website is also available.
Returning used batteries allows customers to receive discounts on new batteries for LG's CordZero A9, A9S, and A7 models. This initiative aims to encourage customer participation in battery collection while linking the batteries generated during product replacement back into the resource cycle.
The collected batteries undergo a disassembly process to recover nickel, lithium, cobalt, and manganese. A single CordZero A9S battery, weighing about 450 grams, can yield 31.91 grams of nickel, 6.06 grams of lithium, 4.21 grams of cobalt, and 2.04 grams of manganese. According to the company, recycling approximately 1,500 used batteries can recover enough lithium for a medium-sized electric vehicle battery.
Since the campaign began in 2022, the cumulative collection amount has surpassed 156 tons, exceeding 340,000 batteries, with over 13 tons of rare metals recovered. The number of participating customers has surpassed 200,000.
Participation in the first year was about 12,000, which increased to over 50,000 last year, a more than fourfold rise. In the first phase of this year’s campaign, around 30,000 people participated, returning 64,000 used batteries, totaling about 29 tons. This collection amount is approximately 10 tons more than the same period last year.
LG Electronics is reinvesting the profits generated from the recovered rare metals back into the community. On October 1, the company donated 15 CordZero AI Object Collection A9 cordless vacuum cleaners to the Pine Tree Home, a child welfare facility, using campaign funds.
Battery Return is part of LG Electronics' broader initiative to recover waste electronics. Last year, the company collected 640,000 tons of waste electronic products across 91 regions in 56 countries. Since 2006, the total collection amount has reached 5.65 million tons.
Son Chang-woo, head of LG Electronics' Living Solutions Division, stated, "We will expand resource recycling activities that customers can easily participate in, contributing to a sustainable future."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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