Yeah, people are harping about how much minerals we need to dig up for all those batteries. Yes, that's true, and we should certainly seek to mine those minerals with minimum environmental damage, and seek out new battery chemistries not needing critical materials (e.g. Tesla has announced their next gen batteries will be cobalt-free).
But as you say, batteries can be recycled into new batteries. At some point we'll approach some saturation point, where most of the need for those minerals can be satisfied by recycling old batteries. As opposed to fossil fuels which just go up the tailpipe, and thus need new resources to be extracted constantly.
But as you say, batteries can be recycled into new batteries. At some point we'll approach some saturation point, where most of the need for those minerals can be satisfied by recycling old batteries. As opposed to fossil fuels which just go up the tailpipe, and thus need new resources to be extracted constantly.