Seoul, July 18 (IANS): Following the recall of millions of Galaxy Note 7 devices last year owing to exploding batteries, Samsung on Tuesday announced that it is planning to recycle those handsets, expecting a recovery of nearly 157 tonnes of rare metals, including gold.

The smartphone major has decided to separate and reuse key reusable components such as OLED display modules, memory semiconductors and camera modules through eco-friendly processing methods, some of which will be used as service materials and the remaining parts will be sold, the company said in a statement posted on its Korean website.

The company plans to cooperate with domestic and foreign companies to extract and recycle electronic parts.

Samsung is set to launch Galaxy Note FE, utilising unopened Galaxy Note 7 parts and the rest of the products will be recycled, starting this month.

The refurbished Note 7 will have completely updated software as well as a lower-capacity battery compared to the original model, after attempts to develop a long-lasting but small battery were found to be partly to blame for the phones catching fire.

Last year after receiving several complaints of battery explosion, Samsung had recalled millions of Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, causing the firm operating losses of around 6.1 trillion won ($5 billion).