Effective 2027 the Digital Battery Passport with carbon footprint declaration will be mandatory for all electrical vehicle batteries and industrial batteries above 2 kWh placed on the EU market. LMT-batteries (Light Means of Transport) and additional types of rechargeable batteries will be added under the years up to 2030. The purpose is to enhance transparency, traceability and sustainability said Andrea Casas, Sustainability Head and LCA-expert at CICenergigune, in a webinar. The old directive 2006/66/EC will thus be replaced by the EU-Regulation 2023/1542. The biggest difference, apart from the mandatory aspect, is that while the previous objective was waste-focused the new has a full life-cycle approach. The structural tool for this will be the Digital Battery Passport. This will affect a broad spectrum of manufactures, cell- and module suppliers and others in the battery field. By 2030 the minimum recycled content in new batteries will be 12% for Cobalt, and 4% for Lithium and Nickel each. Recycling must also be done with a 70% efficiency. At 2035 the requirements for recycling will increase further.
With a harmonized regulatory framework, the EU seeks to reduce the overall environmental footprint of batteries and prevent pollution – and ensure free movement of batteries within EU without trade barriers. To control hazardous substances and ensure proper collection and treatment of battery waste will also be simplified once the battery passport is in place.
But, before we get there some work needs to be done. The regulation requires a profound technical documentation, with all components and materials reported, due diligence of the supply chain, carbon footprint declaration, given targets for recycled and recovery content etc.
-It is not so easy to collect all the data required said Ion Onandia at CAF Power & Automation, a company specialised in the design and manufacturing of power systems for the railway sector. The biggest challenge has been to involve all the suppliers in this transformation and obtain the information we need. Some suppliers regard the data asked for as their own and have been reluctant to share, or simply stated they don’t have it. Luckily enough we have now contracted CICenergigune to support us in this process.