• The European Union has passed a new set of rules governing the design, manufacture, disposal, and more, of batteries in the region.
• This will be of particular significance to companies that manufacture batteries for electric vehicles, as well as inverters and smart home solutions. 
• The rules specifically apply to any battery over 2kWh in capacity.

Earlier this month regulators in the European Union (EU) agreed upon a new set of rules regarding batteries in the region moving forward. These rules are far-ranging, and equally far-reaching, applying to any battery over 2kWh in capacity in future.

The regulations cover the entire battery life cycle, including the extraction of materials required for manufacture, design of the battery cells, manufacture of the actual units, and how they are responsibly disposed of.

To that end, the EU is looking to take a greener approach to how batteries are utilised in its region, which should become important as more car markers electrify their fleets and homeowners look to alternative means of power amid a growing energy crisis spurred on by the conflict in Ukraine.

“The agreed rules will cover the entire battery life cycle, from design to end-of-life and apply to all types of batteries sold in the EU: portable batteries, SLI batteries (supplying power for starting, lighting or ignition of vehicles), light means of transport (LMT) batteries (providing power for the traction to wheeled vehicles such as electric scooters and bikes), electric vehicle (EV) batteries and industrial batteries,” the EU explained in an official statement.

“According to the deal, a carbon footprint declaration and label will be obligatory for EV batteries, LMT batteries and rechargeable industrial batteries with a capacity above 2kWh,” it added.

The EU also wants to ensure that consumers are given as much information about the batteries that they use, or power their devices, as possible.

Here, “Batteries will carry labels and QR codes with information related to their capacity, performance, durability, chemical composition, as well as the ‘separate collection’ symbol. LMT batteries, industrial batteries with a capacity above 2 kWh and EV batteries will also be required to have a ‘digital battery passport’ including information on the battery model as well as information specific to the individual battery and its use,” regulators highlighted.

It has set targets as regards the collection of old batteries for disposal too, between now and 2031, along with minimum levels of materials/elements that must be collected.

Furthermore, “All waste LMT, EV, SLI and industrial batteries must be collected, free of charge for end-users, regardless of their nature, chemical composition, condition, brand or origin,” regulators outlined.

“By 31 December 2030, the Commission will assess whether to phase out the use of non-rechargeable portable batteries of general use,” they continued.

Moving forward then, those who use large capacity batteries in their products will need to think carefully about how they are sourced, manufactured, labelled, and disposed of.

[Image – Photo by Michael Fousert on Unsplash]