Europe and Japan will cooperate in recycling EV batteries by establishing a system to share information on the extraction sites and suppliers of minerals used to produce them.

The system, to be launched by 2025, is to counter China, the dominant supplier of rare metals such as lithium. The tracking initiative seeks to prevent outflows of those strategic rare materials from the regions and facilitate their reuse. Japan’s Information-technology Promotion Agency (IPA), under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on Monday will sign a memorandum of understanding with European counterparts on information sharing and mutual certification.

Japan and Europe have their own electronic platforms to manage EV battery information. Japan is forging ahead with its proprietary industrial data platform dubbed the Ouranos Ecosystem, expected to involve around 50 companies including automotive giants such as Toyota Motor, Nissan Motor and Honda Motor. Toyota and Panasonic’s joint battery venture, Prime Planet Energy & Solutions, will also join.

In Europe, the public-private data platform Catena-X is already in operation, led by automotive manufacturers including BMW and Mercedes-Benz Group. Plans are to link Ouranos and Catena-X by 2025. Confidential information related to Japanese companies’ core competitiveness such as suppliers and procurement amounts will not be shared.

The main objective is to share information on the material used in current batteries and enable their tracking, thus preventing outflows beyond their territories. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), China processes and refines 65% of the world’s lithium, a key component in EV batteries. China also accounts for half of all refining plant construction projects in the pipeline to 2030.