Accumotive to recycle batteries for production from 2026

The ‘Battery ReUse Centre Europe’ will be responsible for factory repair solutions for earlier Mercedes-Benz battery generations, which will be reused in the company’s aftersales network. For this purpose, an existing building on the factory premises is to be remodelled and extended. Work on this has already begun. Commissioning of the facilities is planned for early 2026

To this end, an existing building on the factory premises is to be remodelled and extended. Work has already begun, and the facilities are scheduled to go into operation at the beginning of 2026. As soon as the ‘Battery ReUse Centre Europe’ in Saxony starts its actual work, the batteries that have already been used there will be extensively tested for their function and quality based on the specifications for series production. The reconditioned batteries will then be used as spare parts in electric vehicles. However, Mercedes is not specifying the planned quantities.

In Kamenz, Saxony, the Mercedes subsidiary Accumotive has been assembling battery systems since 2012, previously for the electric Smart and now for the electric models of the Mercedes-Benz brand. The official confirmation of the battery reconditioning is also embedded in the press release on the ramp-up of battery assembly for the new CLA. Accumotive has been supplying the Rastatt plant with the new battery generation since this year, according to the press release.

“The highly complex batteries are manufactured on a production line around 350 metres long,” Mercedes states. “Using around 50 different manual and highly automated assembly processes, a large number of components, cell modules, cooling plates and sensors are precisely implemented in the housing and then connected to various electronic components of the battery using integrative high-voltage cabling. Finally, electrical and mechanical validation is carried out using various test benches.”

The new CLA has been in series production since the beginning of June at the compact car plant in Rastatt. The battery packs (made from purchased cells) are delivered to the vehicle plant from Kamenz. Other components are not so far away: the electric drive units and axles come from the Stuttgart-Untertürkheim plant, and body shell components, structural and body parts from Kuppenheim. This is also where the first Mercedes-Benz battery recycling plant is located, which has been in operation since October 2024. If the disused batteries are no longer good enough for further use, they can be recycled in Kuppenheim.

mercedes-benz.com (in German)