Smart Device E-waste Recycling

As part of our efforts to recycle as much electronic waste as possible, we have built a global recycling program for device products and scaled up our product trade-in program. Over the course of 2020, Huawei processed more than 4,500 tons of smart device e-waste through our own recycling stations.

When we receive e-waste, we first categorize the products so that we can most efficiently recycle them and recoup their full value. Electronics that can be refurbished are handed to our partners for resale through official sales channels. Since 2015, we have resold nearly 500,000 devices. Waste that must be scrapped is given to certified third parties who can disassemble and dispose of them in an environmentally friendly manner, to minimize environmental pollution. 

Mobile phone PCBs contain metals, including gold and copper, which can be extracted through the chemical processes of deplating, electrolysis, refining, and smelting. From every 10 million mobile phones, more than 120 kg of gold and 87 tons of copper can be recovered through recycling. That's enough to plate 21,000 Olympic gold medals and cast 190,000 bronze medals, which would supply nearly 10 Beijing Olympic Games.

Huawei's four-step trade-in process