On 28 July 2023, the Official Journal of the European Union published Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 on batteries and waste batteries, repealing Directive 2006/66/EC. It entered into force on the twentieth day after publication. The new regulation governs the entire life cycle of batteries from production to reuse and recycling and ensures that they are safe, sustainable and competitive, with a major impact on battery-related companies.

Scope of the Battery Regulation

The new Battery Regulation applies to all categories of batteries, divided into five types according to their designed use: portable batteries, LMT batteries (light means of transport batteries), SLI batteries (starting, lighting and ignition batteries), industrial batteries and electric vehicle batteries.

Overview of the requirements

The new Battery Regulation sets out requirements on the sustainability and safety of batteries (including hazardous substances, carbon footprint, recycled raw materials, electrochemical performance and durability, and removability and replaceability), on labelling, marking and information (including general information, capacity information, QR codes, the wheelie bin symbol and battery state of health and expected lifetime), and on the conformity of batteries (including presumption of conformity, common specifications, conformity assessment, EU declaration of conformity and CE marking). It also imposes battery due diligence obligations on economic operators placing batteries on the market or putting them into service, sets green public procurement requirements when purchasing batteries or products containing batteries, and lays down requirements on extended producer responsibility, waste battery management and the electronic passport.

Comparison of hazardous substance control, old and new

The new regulation states that, in addition to meeting the hazardous substance requirements of Annex XVII of the EU REACH Regulation and the EU ELV Directive, batteries must not contain the substances restricted in the table below:

Updated battery labelling requirements

General information: all batteries must carry a label with basic battery information, including 10 items such as manufacturer information, battery type, chemical composition, hazardous substances other than lead, cadmium and mercury, and critical raw materials;

Capacity information: rechargeable portable batteries, LMT batteries and SLI batteries must indicate capacity information on the label, and non-rechargeable portable batteries must also indicate the minimum average duration and be marked "non-rechargeable";

QR code: batteries must carry a QR code, with different information for different battery types;

Separate collection symbol: the wheelie bin symbol, with the corresponding chemical symbol added below it for batteries containing more than 0.002% cadmium or more than 0.004% lead;

CE marking: all batteries must bear the CE marking before being placed on the market.