Cyclic Materials to recycle magnets from Lime’s from North American e-bikes and scooters
June 16, 2025
Cyclic Materials, based in Toronto, Canada, has announced an agreement to recycle magnets from retired electric motors powering Lime e-bikes and e-scooters across Canada and the United States. This reportedly marks the first at-scale recycling initiative focused on rare earth magnets in the North American micro mobility sector.
“Cyclic is excited to partner with Lime, a company demonstrating what true circularity looks like in action,” said Ahmad Ghahreman, CEO and co-founder of Cyclic Materials. “This partnership sets a powerful precedent for how innovative companies can close critical loops in the clean energy supply chain through the recycling of the permanent magnets that power modern mobility. We are proud to support Lime’s bold net-zero and sustainability goals, while helping build a future where materials are recycled and reused, sustaining a more resilient supply for rare earth elements across the industry.”
Today, less than 1% of rare earth magnets are recycled globally, leaving an ‘above-ground mine’ of over 43,000 metric tonnes of end-of-life NdFeB magnets expected in the U.S. alone by 2035, according to Adamas Intelligence.
Together, Cyclic and Lime aim to address this challenge by leveraging Cyclic Materials’ MagCycle and REEPure technologies to recover rare earth magnets from end-of-life vehicles. This collaboration unlocks an untapped resource and establishes further circularity in clean mobility. This partnership builds on Cyclic’s growth momentum and is expected to strengthen both companies’ position in the clean energy transition.
“Circularity is a core part of our sustainability mission. Partnering with Cyclic Materials helps us take a meaningful step towards enhancing the recovery of already-processed materials and placing them for reuse back into the supply chain,” said Andrew Savage, VP of Sustainability at Lime. “Through Cyclic’s innovative approach, we are able to give new life to critical materials from decommissioned electric motors, increasing the recovery of these materials through the end-of-life process and, hopefully, supporting such practices to scale across electric mobility and beyond.”
Cyclic and Lime plan to begin operations in the coming weeks, with initial shipments already planned while activities are expected to ramp up throughout 2025.The agreement will be serviced primarily through Cyclic’s recently announced Mesa, Arizona, US, facility as well its Kingston, Ontario location.
