Tens of millions of tons of annual demand from mines and refineries can be displaced through metals recovery from urban waste. But the industry overall features high operating costs, and low profits. Most of the feedstock for urban mines are from junked cars and trucks, especially EV's. China began development of their urban mining industry over two decades ago, and today has 85% of the world’s recycling capacity. Western firms are far behind, and are unlikely to catch up. China's urban mining industries benefit from its dominance in EV and battery production, and in electronics. Closing scene, pedestrian streets, Chengdu Urban Mining: The Hidden Treasure in Your City’s Waste Recycling can bring multiple benefits in ensuring reliable and sustainable critical mineral supplies Printed circuit board recycling China as a blueprint: From waste importer to recycling world champion Urban Mining: China’s Dead EV Batteries L'engagement en faveur de l'économie circulaire et de l'exploitation minière urbaine favorise le recyclage du cuivre en Chine China embraces new opportunities by tapping into 'urban mines' Research on Urban Mining Development in Chinafile:///C:/Users/dell/Downloads/Research%20on%20Urban%20Mining%20Development%20in%20China.pdf Research on Urban Mining Development in China Electric Vehicle Battery Recycling Market (2026 - 2033) Why is it so hard for the US to get urban mining right? CHART: China’s global electric car dominance China's Monopoly on Critical Minerals Visualizing China’s Dominance in Clean Energy Metals New mines take nearly 18 years to build in 2020-23
Resources and links:
https://www.elemental.biz/urban-mining-the-hidden-treasure-in-your-citys-waste/5670/
https://www.iea.org/reports/recycling-of-critical-minerals/executive-summary
https://scispace.com/pdf/printed-circuit-board-recycling-physicochemical-and-economic-4l9b0kpklg.pdf#
https://felss.com/en/blog/urban-mining-waste-is-the-new-ore/
https://futurenowgreennews.com/urban-mining-chinas-dead-ev-batteries/
https://internationalcopper.org/fr/resource/commitment-to-the-circular-economy-and-urban-mining-drives-copper-recycling-in-china/
https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202411/05/WS6729e437a310f1265a1cb975.html
https://www.engineering.org.cn/sscae/EN/10.15302/J-SSCAE-2017.04.015
https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/ev-battery-recycling-market-report
https://www.latitudemedia.com/news/why-is-it-so-hard-for-the-us-to-get-urban-mining-right/
https://www.adamasintel.com/charts-china-global-electric-car-dominance/
https://www.statista.com/chart/35398/china-dominant-share-in-global-mining-production-of-critical-minerals
https://elements.visualcapitalist.com/visualizing-chinas-dominance-in-clean-energy-metals/
https://theoregongroup.com/investment-news/new-mines-take-nearly-18-years-to-build-in-2020-23/
Inside China / Business · Aug 20, 2026
The Urban Mining race: US and Europe already a decade behind, and probably cannot catch up
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