Apple Will Reuse Used Cobalt In Batteries By 2025 To Reach Carbon Zero By 2030

JAKARTA - Apple Inc announced on Thursday April 13 that it will be using recycled cobalts in their batteries starting in 2025. This is done as part of their efforts to make all their products carbon neutral by the end of the decade.

The magnets on Apple devices will use rare recycled metal elements, and printed circuit boards designed in them will use lead and recycled gold coatings, according to the company's statement.

Apple is trying to become carbon neutral through its entire supply chain and the life cycle of each product by 2030. On Tuesday, April 11, the company also doubled its financial commitments into the funds they had established two years ago to invest in projects that eliminate carbon in the atmosphere.

Several tech companies were previously accused of being partners in child deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) forced to mine cobalt, an essential ingredient in batteries used in most consumer electronics.

Most cobalts are produced as a byproduct of copper or nickel mining, but small miners south of Congo exploit near-surface deposits rich in cobalt.

A quarter of the entire cobalt used in Apple products comes from recycled materials in 2022, up from 13% from the previous year, Apple said.

Now, as Reuters reports, Apple gets more than two-thirds of all aluminum, nearly three-quarters of all rare earth metals, and more than 95% of all tungsten in their products from recycled materials.