Tesla cofounder’s Redwood shows 95% efficiency in battery recycling pilot
Redwood Materials’ EV battery recycling pilot program has been going on for a year in California, and today the company shared an update on how things are going.
Redwood Materials was founded by JB Straubel, former Tesla CTO and one of Tesla’s five cofounders.
The pilot program started a year ago, collecting old EV battery packs from Volvo and Ford. Since then, Redwood has partnered with other automakers, such as Audi and the rest of VW Group, and the company even scored a $2b loan last month to help it scale.
Redwood’s headquarters is in Nevada, near Tesla’s Gigafactory, though the company is planning to expand to South Carolina as well.
Right over the border from Redwood’s Nevada HQ is California, the largest and most mature electric vehicle market in America, which gives Redwood easy access to a large number of aging hybrid and electric car battery packs for recycling.
Currently, those packs include a mix of NiMH and Li-Ion packs, the former being used primarily in older hybrids and the latter in newer EV and hybrid packs. Redwood has accepted 1,268 battery packs from 19 separate BEV and Hybrid models, which presents challenges to recyclers as every pack is designed differently and cell formats differ as well.
These packs weighed a total of half a million pounds, and Redwood managed over 95% efficiency in recovering important metals from them. This is incredibly high efficiency – especially compared to the 0% recycling efficiency of gasoline, the energy storage device for competing vehicles.
And Redwood has already struck a deal with Panasonic to sell the results of this recycling in the form of high-nickel cathode materials.
Redwood doesn’t only accept electric vehicle battery packs though. Through its partnership with Audi, it accepts batteries from old phones, laptops, and the like. These collections are done through 11 dropboxes in seven states, or you can ship your batteries directly to the company.
To find out more about Redwood’s Consumer Recycling Program and how and where you can recycle your batteries, check out its website here.
Battery recycling is expected to become increasingly important in coming years, as EV battery packs start reaching end-of-life. Currently, only the earliest EV batteries are starting to be recycled (for example, this author’s 15-year-old Roadster battery is still working, but showing its age).
With the EV market rapidly growing (16x as many EVs were sold in the US in 2022 as in 2012), recycling of old batteries will necessarily make up a small minority of EV battery material supply for years to come, but it will still be an important percentage especially with new government incentives.
The Inflation Reduction Act tied the EV tax credit to battery sourcing requirements which stipulate that “critical minerals” must be extracted, processed, or recycled in the US or in a country the US has a free trade agreement with. That last section is important – even if the battery materials originate elsewhere, as long as they are recycled in the US, they’re fair game, which means that recycling companies are well-positioned to provide these minerals to automakers.
Redwood’s strategy is to partner directly to these automakers to keep costs down. Redwood says that this increases safety and efficiency and helps to keep cost down, improving competitiveness of US-recycled materials when compared to freshly-mined ones.
The company also endorsed the idea of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), a legal framework where producers of recyclable goods are held responsible for the recycling of those goods. California modified its battery recycling laws in 2022, taking an EPR approach to batteries, and the state and several other regions in the world are currently considering expanding that approach to other materials as well, such as plastics. But Redwood opined that any battery EPR scheme should allow recyclers and OEMs to partner directly, in order to increase efficiency and keep costs down.
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Believe it or not, you can lease an EV for under $200 a month. New deals on models like the 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 and Kia EV6 are hard to pass up this month.
Electric vehicles have been all over the news lately, with the Trump administration threatening to end federal incentives and introducing new tariffs that are expected to lead to higher prices.
On the positive side, new EV models are arriving, giving buyers more options and driving prices down. Many automakers reported record US electric car sales in the first three months of 2024.
GM remained the number two seller of EVs behind Tesla after sales doubled in Q1 2025. With the new Equinox, Blazer, and Silverado EVs rolling out, Chevy is now the fastest-growing EV brand in the US. Ford’s Mustang Mach-E is off to its best sales start since launching, with over 11,600 models sold in the first quarter.
With the 2025 models rolling out and about 15 new EVs arriving this year, many automakers are introducing steep discounts to move vehicles off the lot.
EVs for lease for under $200 a month in April
Although the decade-old Nissan LEAF remains one of the most affordable this April at just $149 per month, there are a few EVs under $200 right now that are worth taking a look at.
The new 2025 Hyundai IONIQ might be the best EV deal this month, with leases as low as $199. Hyundai is currently promoting a 24-month lease deal with $3,999 due at signing.
Hyundai upgraded the electric SUV with a bigger battery for more range (now up to 318 miles), a sleek new look inside and out, and it now comes with an NACS port so you can charge it at Tesla Superchargers.
The offer is for the IONIQ 5 SE RWD Standard Range, which has a driving range of up to 245 miles. For just $229 a month, you can snag the SE RWD model, which has a range of up to 318 miles and a more powerful (225 horsepower) electric motor. It’s also a 24-month lease with $3,999 due at signing.
To sweeten the deal, Hyundai is offering a free ChargePoint Home Flex Level 2 EV charger with the purchase or lease of any 2024 or 2025 IONIQ 5. If you already have one, you can opt for a $400 public charging credit.
After slashing lease prices this month, the 2025 Nissan Ariya is actually cheaper than the LEAF in some regions. In Southern California, the 2025 Nissan Ariya Evolve AWD is listed at just $129 per month. The AWD model has a range of up to 272 miles.
The deal is for 36 months, with $4,409 due at signing. In April, Nissan cut Ariya lease prices to around $239 in most other parts of the country.
Kia has a few EVs available to lease for under $200 a month in April. The 2025 Kia Niro EV Wind is listed at just $129 for 24 months, with $3,999 due at signing. Kia’s crossover SUV has EPA-estimated range of 253 miles.
The 2024 EV6 may be worth considering at just $179 for 24 months ($3,999 due at signing). In California, the EV6 Light Long Range RWD is only slightly more than the Niro Wind.
In most other parts of the country, you can still find the EV6 for under $200 a month. The Light Long Range RWD trim offers up to 310 miles of EPA-estimated range.
| Lease Price | Term (months) |
Amount Due at Signing | Driving Range | |
| 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 SE RWD Standard Range | $199 | 24 | $3,999 | 245 miles |
| 2024 Kia EV6 Light Long Rang RWD | $179 | 24 | $3,999 | 310 miles |
| 2024 Kia Niro EV Wind | $129 | 24 | $3,999 | 253 miles |
| 2025 Nissan Ariya Evolve AWD | $129 | 36 | $4,409 | 272 miles |
| 2025 Nissan LEAF S FWD | $149 | 36 | $2,629 | 149 miles |
| 2024 Fiat 500 INSPI(RED) | $199 | 24 | $2,999 | 149 miles |
And don’t forget the 2024 Fiat 500e, which is now listed at just $199 for 24 months with $2,999 due at signing. The electric hatchback offers a range of up to 149 miles.
If you are looking to spend a little more, check out our list of EVs you can lease for under $300 a month.
Ready to snag the savings while they are still here? At under $200 a month, some of these EV lease deals are hard to pass up right now. Check out our links below to find deals in your area.
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![The US’s first solar panels over canals pilot is now online [video]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/04/Project-Nexus-solar-canal.jpg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
Project Nexus, the first solar panel canopies over irrigation canals in the US, is now online in California, and there are plans to expand the project to other areas.
Project Nexus is a $20 million pilot in central California’s Turlock Irrigation District launched in October 2022. The project team is exploring solar over canal design, deployment, and co-benefits using canal infrastructure and the electrical grid.
India already has solar panels over canals, but Project Nexus is the first of its kind in the US.
The Turlock Irrigation District was the first irrigation district formed in California in 1887. It provides irrigation water to 4,700 growers who farm around 150,000 acres in the San Joaquin Valley.
Project Nexus will explore whether the solar panels reduce water evaporation as a result of midday shade and wind mitigation, create improvements to water quality through reduced vegetative growth, reduce canal maintenance as a result of reduced vegetative growth, and, of course, generate renewable electricity.
The California Department of Water Resources, utility company Turlock Irrigation District, Marin County, California-based water and energy project developer Solar AquaGrid, and The University of California, Merced, are partnering on the pilot. Project Nexus originated from a 2021 research project led by UC Merced alumna and project scientist Brandi McKuin.
Solar panels were installed at two sites over both wide- and narrow-span sections of Turlock Irrigation District canals in Stanislaus County, in various orientations. The sections range from 20 feet wide to 100 feet wide. University of California, Merced has positioned research equipment at both sites to collect baseline data so the researchers can decide where solar will work and where it won’t.
In February 2023, Project Nexus announced it would also deploy long-term iron flow battery storage in the form of two ESS 75kW turnkey “Energy Warehouse” batteries.
You can learn more about Project Nexus here:
Read more: In a US first, California will pilot solar-panel canopies over canals
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