It's a dangerous, hazardous material that needs to be broken...

It's a dangerous, hazardous material that needs to be broken down into its core components again to be rendered safe.

Don't forget, just the act of battery recycling might apply downward pressure on battery metals, making battery packs cheaper & creating more demand for EVs & battery storage. It will take time for prices to find an equilibrium with supply & demand.

Think of the resources & manpower required to mine all that lithium, nickel & cobalt from around the world. Think of all the required work from exploration to drilling, mining, shipping & processing. That whole process isn't required for battery recycling, all that valuable ore is sitting inside the battery. Battery manufacturers can get all the metals they need from old batteries.