2025 Battery Symposium Recap

“The 3rd Annual Battery Symposium, held in the heart of Charleston from April 29 to May 1, was another maxed-out event. This year we cranked things up by diving deep into battery recycling, circularity and the critical materials that power the battery supply chain — especially fitting given our proximity to Redwood Materials’ new Gigafactory. Attendees left energized by the promise of sustainable practices shaping the future of energy storage; sincere thanks to our speakers for their insight and to our sponsors for their generous support.”

Suzanne Dickerson – Director, SC Fraunhofer USA Alliance

The Battery Symposium gathered leaders from industry, academia and government to move South Carolina’s battery ecosystem forward. Sessions explored the full lifecycle of batteries — from critical-materials sourcing and manufacturing to safety, recycling and workforce development — with an eye toward translating conversations into pilots, partnerships and policy recommendations.

Highlights
Keynotes from Phenogy, BMW, Redwood Materials, University of South Carolina and more, as well as industry panels framed the commercial opportunities and R&D priorities for scaling battery manufacturing and deployment.

A policy session brought research organizations and government stakeholders together to discuss permitting, incentives and environmental compliance that will influence investment decisions.

A focused Recycling & Safety workshop addressed standards, certifications and commercial pathways for end-of-life management and circularity. The program also included OEM and large-energy perspectives, including engagement with Volvo Energy, to ensure discussions reflected vehicle- and utility-scale realities.

Themes & takeaways
Discussion converged on a few practical priorities for South Carolina’s Battery Ecosystem:

• building an in-state value chain that links manufacturing with local suppliers
• establishing robust safety standards and certified recycling
• creating predictable permitting and incentive frameworks to de-risk investment
• investing in hands-on workforce programs and shared pilot infrastructure to meet near-term hiring needs and speed commercialization

Next steps
Attendees left with clear actions: stand up recycling and end-of-life pilots, align workforce training with community colleges and technical schools, and work with policymakers to convert conversations into implementable incentives and permitting pathways. SC Competes will continue to convene partners to translate Symposium momentum into pilots, training programs and policy roadmaps.

Thanks
Thanks to our speakers and sponsors — your expertise and support made the 3rd Annual Battery Symposium informative and action-oriented. Here’s to a cleaner, more resilient energy future powered by innovation and collaboration.