Apple to use recycled cobalt in batteries by 2025: Report

Apple Inc said on Thursday it would use only recycled cobalt in batteries by 2025 as a part of its efforts to make all its products carbon neutral by the end of the decade. Also Read: Apple iPad Pro Launched In India With New M5 Chip, Ultra Retina XDR Display: Price, Specs

Magnets in Apple devices will use recycled rare earth elements, and in-house designed printed circuit boards will use recycled tin soldering and gold plating, the company said. Also Read: Apple Launches 14-inch MacBook Pro With M5 Chip And Up To 24-Hour Battery Life: Check Price And Availability

Apple is pushing to become carbon neutral through its entire supply chain and the life cycle of every product by 2030. On Tuesday, it also doubled its financial commitment to a fund it had established two years ago to invest in projects that remove carbon from the atmosphere. Also Read: iPhone 13 vs iPhone 14 vs iPhone 15: Best Deal To Grab This Diwali Under Rs 50000

In the past, several tech companies have been accused of being complicit in the death of children in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) forced to mine cobalt, a critical material in the batteries used in most consumer electronics.

Most cobalt is produced as a by-product of copper or nickel mining, but artisanal miners in southern Congo exploit deposits near the surface that are rich in cobalt.

A quarter of all cobalt used in Apple products came from recycled material in 2022, up from 13% a year earlier, Apple said.

It now sources over two-thirds of all aluminum, nearly three-quarters of all rare earths, and more than 95% of all tungsten in its products from recycled material.

— Reuters