Indicative. Final price depends on grade, contamination and quantity, and is confirmed on weighment at pickup.
The rate above is what National Recycling pays for lead scrap today in Mumbai and Thane, recalculated daily from live London Metal Exchange lead pricing.
Lead is the most tightly regulated material we handle, and the one where choosing the wrong buyer carries real consequences for the seller rather than just a poor price. Most lead scrap in India arrives as used batteries, and used batteries are regulated waste. Before the rate matters, the paperwork does.
Used batteries are regulated waste
Under the Battery Waste Management Rules, used lead-acid batteries must be handed to a registered recycler, and the transaction has to be documented. Informal smelting of batteries is both illegal and a serious health hazard, and it remains widespread.
If you are a company disposing of batteries, the obligation does not end when the vehicle leaves your gate. Keep the handover documentation. If a buyer cannot produce registration details, that is the moment to stop, not a detail to sort out later.
Lead scrap grades and forms
| Form | What it is | How it prices |
|---|---|---|
| Soft leadpure lead | Sheet, pipe, flashing, counterweights, radiation shielding. Soft, dull grey, marks with a fingernail. | The top grade. Clean and close to pure. |
| Hard leadantimonial | Lead alloyed with antimony for hardness. Battery grids, bearings, older printing type. | Below soft lead, because the alloy limits where it can go back. |
| Lead-acid batterieswhole, intact | Automotive, inverter, UPS and traction batteries, complete and undrained. | Priced per kilogram of whole battery, not on lead content. Regulated handover required. |
| Battery plates | Lead plates separated from casings. | Priced on lead content. Should only reach you if dismantling was done lawfully. |
| Cable sheathing | Lead sheath stripped from old power and telecom cable. | Good grade once free of the copper conductor and bitumen. |
| Lead wheel weights | Balancing weights from tyre workshops, usually with a steel clip. | Priced after the clip weight is deducted. |
Do not break batteries open. It exposes people to acid and lead dust, it is an offence, and it does not improve what you are paid. Whole batteries are bought by weight as they are.
Where lead scrap comes from
- Battery replacement. Fleet operators, transport companies, telecom sites, data centres and inverter dealers all replace batteries on a cycle. This is the largest source by far.
- Telecom and UPS estates. Backup battery banks reaching end of life, often in significant quantity at once and always requiring documented disposal.
- Cable stripping and utility works. Lead-sheathed cable removed during network upgrades.
- Construction and roofing. Lead flashing, sheet and pipe from older buildings under renovation.
- Hospitals and imaging centres. Lead shielding from X-ray and radiology rooms during refit.
- Tyre and workshop trade. Used wheel balancing weights, accumulated in volume over time.
What moves the lead rate
The LME price
London Metal Exchange lead is the reference, and the rate above is recalculated from it daily.
Battery demand
Lead is exceptional among metals in that one application dominates it. The overwhelming majority of world lead goes into batteries, and most new lead comes from recycled batteries rather than from mines. That makes the lead market unusually closed-loop, and it means battery demand effectively sets the scrap price.
Vehicle and telecom replacement cycles
Indian lead scrap supply is seasonal in a way other metals are not, because battery failures cluster. Demand for replacement batteries and the supply of scrapped ones move together.
Regulation and enforcement
Because informal smelting competes with the licensed sector on cost, enforcement activity genuinely affects what registered recyclers can pay. Tighter enforcement narrows the gap.
Getting more for your lead
- Keep soft and hard lead apart. Sheet and pipe are worth more than battery grids and bearing metal.
- Hand batteries over whole. Breaking them is illegal, hazardous and gains you nothing.
- Accumulate before calling. Lead is dense, so a modest-looking pile can be a worthwhile load. Small quantities cost more in transport than they return.
- Keep the paperwork. For a company, documented handover to a registered recycler is the part that matters most, and it costs nothing to get right.
How we weigh and pay
Collection is free for business quantities. We bring the vehicle and labour, weigh on site, and pay against the weighment slip. Batteries are collected whole and handled under the required documentation, which you receive as part of the transaction rather than having to chase afterwards.
You get a weighment record, a material-wise breakup and recycling documentation appropriate to regulated waste, which is what your EHS and audit teams will ask for.
Other rate calculators
Lead scrap questions we get asked
What is the lead scrap rate today in Mumbai?
The live figure is at the top of this page, recalculated daily from London Metal Exchange lead pricing converted to rupees per kilogram. It reflects clean soft lead. Hard lead, battery plates and whole batteries price differently.
Can I sell used lead-acid batteries to anyone?
No. Under the Battery Waste Management Rules used lead-acid batteries must go to a registered recycler and the handover must be documented. For a company, the responsibility does not end at your gate. Ask any buyer for registration details before the batteries leave, not afterwards.
Should batteries be drained or broken before collection?
No. Batteries should be handed over whole and intact. Breaking them exposes people to acid and lead dust, it is an offence, and it does not increase what you are paid, since whole batteries are bought by weight as they are.
What is the difference between soft lead and hard lead?
Soft lead is close to pure and is found in sheet, pipe, flashing and radiation shielding. Hard lead is alloyed with antimony for strength and appears in battery grids, bearings and older printing type. Soft lead prices above hard lead because the alloy restricts where it can be reused.
Do you buy lead-sheathed cable?
Yes. Lead sheathing stripped from old power and telecom cable is a good grade once separated from the copper conductor and any bitumen. We will usually price the lead and the recovered copper separately.
How much lead is in a typical battery?
Most of a lead-acid battery’s weight is lead, in the plates and terminals, with the balance being the case, acid and separators. We buy whole batteries by gross weight rather than quoting on lead content, which keeps the transaction simple and avoids any incentive to dismantle them.