The European Union has issued a new regulation on batteries and battery waste. The new regulation will regulate the entire life cycle of batteries – from production to reuse and recycling – and ensure they are safe, sustainable and competitive.
Batteries are key to the decarbonisation process and the EU's move towards zero emissions. At the same time, batteries at the end of their life contain many valuable resources and we should learn to reuse raw materials instead of relying on third countries for supplies. The new rules will promote the competitiveness of European industry and ensure that new batteries are sustainable and contribute to the green transition.
The European Parliament's regulation will apply to all batteries, including portable batteries, electric vehicle batteries, industrial batteries, starting, lightning and ignition (SLI) batteries (mainly used for vehicles) and batteries for light vehicles ( e.g. e-bikes, e-mopeds, e-scooters).
The regulation sets targets for producers to collect waste portable batteries (63% by the end of 2027 and 73% by the end of 2030) and introduces a dedicated collection target for waste batteries for light vehicles (51% by end of 2028 and 61% by the end of 2031).
Among other things, the regulation stipulates that by 2027 portable batteries embedded in devices will have to be removed and replaced by the end user, leaving plenty of time for device manufacturers to adapt their product designs in this direction.
This is a very important provision for consumers.
Read the regulation
