The EU Battery and Waste Battery Regulations have been voted through, and battery management has become more stringent

　　Recently, the "EU Batteries and Waste Batteries Regulation" was approved by the European Parliament's Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee (ENVI) with 74 votes in favor, 8 votes against and 5 abstentions. The draft report provides a clearer definition of which batteries can enter the market and sets minimum requirements for the content of recyclable materials in batteries.

　　As a professional customized lithium battery partner with many customers in Europe, SES Power has nearly 20 years of experience in energy storage power stations, energy storage systems, energy storage lithium batteries, inverters, photovoltaic power generation and other products. Launched 12V100Ah, 12V200Ah, 24V100Ah, 24V200Ah, 36V100Ah, 48V50Ah, 48V100Ah, etc. using square aluminum-shell lithium iron phosphate batteries, and 12V30Ah, 12V50Ah, 12V60ah car starting batteries using high-performance lithium batteries (the maximum peak current can reach 1500A). We are naturally concerned about the latest European regulations for lithium batteries, and we try to quickly identify and share important information:

　　A: Introduce new battery classification

　　The most important modification in the latest revision is the modification of the battery classification, which introduces the classification of Light Means of Transport Battery. Light vehicles include: electric bicycles, electric scooters. These battery categories are not clearly defined under EU Directive 2006/66/EC. At the same time, it is also clear that light vehicle batteries do not belong to the category of industrial batteries.

　　B: Labeling Requirements

　　The draft new battery law has updated the labelling requirements, and the new labelling requirements will include the following points:

　　(a) Basic information: From January 1, 2027, a label containing the basic information of the battery should be attached to the battery, including manufacturer information, battery type, chemical composition, unexpectedly harmful substances such as lead, cadmium, mercury, key 8 items including raw materials.

　　(b) Capacity information: From January 1, 2027, batteries shall be accompanied by a symbol indicating separate collection.

　　(c) Separate Collection Symbol: From July 1, 2023, batteries shall be accompanied by a symbol indicating separate collection.

　　(d) Chemical symbols of over-limited substances: From July 1, 2023, batteries containing more than 0.002% cadmium or more than 0.004% lead should be marked with the chemical symbols of over-limited substances under the separate collection symbol.

　　(e) QR code: The battery shall also be attached with a QR code label to provide relevant information.

　　(f) CE labeling: The draft new battery law also requires batteries to be CE labelled before they are placed on the market.

　　C: Information Request

　　Rechargeable industrial and electric vehicle batteries with internal storage and capacity greater than 2kWh shall include a battery management system for determining battery health and life expectancy status data, including the following parameters:

　　(a) Remaining capacity

　　(b) Overall capacity fade

　　(c) Remaining power capacity and power decay

　　(d) Residual cycle efficiency

　　(f) Actual cooling requirements

　　(g) Self-discharge rate evolution

　　(h) Ohmic resistance and/or electrochemical impedance

　　(i) The date of manufacture of the battery and the date it was put into service

　　(j) Energy throughput

　　(k) Capacity throughput

　　D: Requirements for recycled raw materials

　　The draft new battery law adds requirements for recycled raw materials to industrial batteries containing cobalt, lead, lithium, and nickel with internal storage and capacity greater than 2kWh, electric vehicle batteries and automotive batteries, and the accompanying technical document contains information on the presence of active materials in batteries The content of cobalt, lead, lithium and nickel recovered from waste, minimum recycled content.

　　The 2030 cobalt, lead, lithium, and nickel recycling targets are advanced to 2028, and the corresponding methodology and reporting format are advanced from 2025 to 2022. At the same time, the recovery ratio of cobalt, copper, lithium and nickel in batteries is required to be further increased.

　　E: Carbon Footprint Requirements

　　Carbon footprint is a high frequency keyword in this document. The newly added light-duty vehicle batteries and industrial batteries with a rated energy of more than 2kWh in this revision are required to calculate the carbon footprint of the product production cycle and clearly mark the product. The overall goal of the European Commission for carbon footprint is still to limit the maximum carbon footprint of battery products and gradually reduce the carbon footprint of battery products in the EU market to ensure the achievement of the 2050 climate change target table.

　　F: Requirements for disposal of used batteries

　　Used batteries should be disposed of as a separate category. The battery producer is obliged to define clear operational and financial support arrangements for the full life cycle of the battery, and the related responsibilities of the producer are extended to the post-product consumption service stage.

　　Producers should make financial arrangements and provide financial support for organizing the collection of waste batteries, pre-processing, disposal, cascade utilization preparation and recycling of waste batteries.

　　In the revised draft, there are special requirements for the disposal of waste lithium batteries. Lithium batteries must have clear disposal procedures to ensure that waste lithium batteries are properly classified and reported.

　　From the above changes, it can be seen that Europe is upgrading its control of batteries, from the initial policy guidance, such as imposing high environmental taxes on lead-acid batteries, to the formulation of comprehensive and strict standards and regulations. In SES Power's view, this is a very good thing, and only in this way can the battery industry have a clear direction, so as to ensure the healthy and sustainable development of the battery industry.