EU Battery Passport: New Rules for the Battery Lifecycle

EU Regulation 2023/1542 introduces new rules governing the battery lifecycle in the European Union (EU). These requirements cover every stage, from manufacture through to reuse. According to the European Commission, they are intended to improve consumer transparency and safety around this component.

One of the regulation’s most significant developments is the battery passport, although this measure is not expected to take effect until 2027. It is designed to provide detailed battery information, including its origin, the materials used to make it and all relevant post-manufacturing details.

According to the European Commission, “the new rules are intended to promote the circular economy by applying to the entire battery lifecycle”, while delivering greater transparency.

The battery passport will be compulsory not only for electric car batteries, but also for all waste portable batteries, industrial batteries, starter, lighting and ignition batteries, and light means of transport such as bicycles, mopeds and electric scooters.

Battery passport: how will it work?

Unlike the passports people use, it will not be issued as a physical booklet. Instead, the battery passport will be available through a QR code, “which is linked to a unique identifier assigned by the economic operator placing the battery on the market”.

Scanning this QR code will make it possible to access information covering the battery’s full lifecycle. More accurately, it will cover almost the entire lifecycle, since the available data will vary by user type in order to safeguard intellectual property.

“Not everyone will have access to the same data. The manufacturer has access to everything. But the buyer only has access to general information (…) such as the battery’s capacity and state of health.”

• Ellen Carey, Head of External Relations at Circulor, a company that produces battery passports

Although access will be restricted, these passports will give buyers more information about their vehicle, particularly about a component that is among the costliest in fully electric vehicles.

This measure could also affect the process of buying a used car, giving purchasers more tools to make their decision.

Information available to buyers and the public

Under EU Regulation 2023/1542, the information that must be publicly accessible includes: the manufacturer’s name; the battery category and identifying information; place and date of manufacture; weight; capacity; chemical composition; hazardous substances present, in addition to mercury, cadmium or lead; the extinguishing agent to be used; and critical raw materials present.

The passport must also include:

• carbon footprint;
• responsible sourcing;
• recycled content;
• share of renewable content;
• rated capacity (Ah);
• minimum, nominal and maximum voltage;
• power capability (watts) and limits;
• lifetime (in cycles);
• capacity fade threshold;
• the temperature range the battery can withstand when not in use;
• guaranteed storage lifetime period;
• energy efficiency at the start of the cycle and at 50% of lifecycle;
• internal resistance of battery cells and cell batteries;
• C-rate for the relevant lifecycle test, meaning the charge or discharge rate that correlates with the lithiation or delithiation rate of the electrode material;
• marking/labelling requirements;
• EU declaration of conformity;
• information on the prevention and management of battery waste.

Restricted battery passport data

In addition to the information available publicly, further data will also exist, such as detailed composition, dismantling, condition and safety information. This category of information will be available only to the European Commission, conformity assessment bodies and market surveillance authorities.

Source: Autocar