Transition towards a sustainable circular battery business ecosystem: quality management principles impacting the value chain

Circular economy-oriented electric vehicle (EV) battery ecosystems remain nascent due to multiple uncertainties and complexities in their development. This paper studies the development of a sustainable and circular battery business ecosystem, the main actors, and critical quality, cost, and delivery issues in the battery value chain. This empirical case study includes semi-structured interviews with various actors in the battery value chain to explore the barriers and enablers of a circular battery ecosystem for EV batteries in Japan. The country has limited indigenous access to critical materials, while a circular battery business ecosystem could provide more sustainable local solutions both in the first and second life stages of EV batteries. The interview data are structured based on circular business modeling principles, circular economy development strategies, and quality management principles based on the Quality-Cost-Delivery (QCD) framework. The findings highlight that QCD principles and safety considerations related to battery reuse and recycling play a significant role in the implementation of a circular business ecosystem among Japanese actors in the battery sector. The study contributes to the literature by providing a novel perspective on how quality management principles impact the battery value chain in circular economy ecosystem development.