EU regulation on batteries and waste of batteries: a new way for circular economy

On 10 July 2023 the European Council adopted a new regulation (batteries and waste of batteries) that strengthens sustainability rules:

• for batteries;
• for waste batteries;

This regulation covers all categories of batteries including:

• all waste portable batteries;
• electric vehicle batteries;
• industrial batteries;
• starting, lightning and ignition (SLI) batteries (used mostly for vehicles and machinery);
• batteries for light means of transport (e.g. electric bikes, e-mopeds, e-scooters).

The regulation aims to:

1. promote a circular economy by regulating batteries throughout their life cycle;
2. sets targets for producers to collect waste;
3. mandatoryminimum levels of recycled content;
4. recycling efficiency target;
5. from 2027 portable batteries incorporated into appliances should be removable and replaceable by the end-user, leaving sufficient time for operators to adapt the design of their products to this requirement.

The regulation will now be signed by the Council and the European Parliament. It will then be published in the EU’s Official Journal and enter into force 20 days after.