On 10 July 2023 the European Parliament adopted the Batteries and Waste Batteries Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, also known as the new EU Battery Regulation. It became mandatory on 18 February 2024. As an important achievement of the European Green Deal, it is the first legal instrument in the form of a Regulation to govern the entire life cycle of batteries, covering production, use, reuse and recycling, with the aim of advancing the EU circular economy and achieving the EU's carbon neutrality goals.

Scope of the new Battery Regulation

The new Battery Regulation applies to all categories of batteries, which are 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

Electric vehicle batteries

Among these, portable batteries are the most widely used, so the regulatory interpretation below focuses on portable batteries.

1. What is a portable battery?

A portable battery is any battery that is sealed, weighs 5 kg or less, is not designed specifically for industrial use and is not an electric vehicle battery, an LMT battery or an SLI battery.

2. Substance restrictions (Article 6)

The EU Battery Regulation requires economic operators to identify hazardous substances in batteries and sets out restriction conditions.

From 18 February 2024 the following requirements must be met:

Note: materials in batteries shall also comply with the restricted substances requirements of Annex XVII of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 (REACH) and of Directive 2000/53/EC on end-of-life vehicles.

3. Performance and durability requirements (Article 9)

General requirements for portable batteries

From 18 August 2028 the following parameters must meet the minimum values laid down in the Regulation (the minimum limits will be set by a delegated act on 18 August 2027):

Note: for batteries in mobile phones and tablets, the requirements of the Ecodesign Regulation (EU) 2023/1670 apply.

4. Removability and replaceability (Article 10)

Portable batteries shall be removable and replaceable at any time during the lifetime of the product.

1. The battery can be removed and replaced by end users from the product at any time during the product's life; the product shall be accompanied by instructions for use, removal and replacement of the battery as well as safety information, kept permanently available on a publicly accessible website;

2. This applies only to the battery as a whole, not to individual cells or other parts contained in the battery;

3. Replacement shall not affect the function, performance or safety of the product;

4. Spare batteries shall be made available for five years after the last unit of the product is placed on the market and at a reasonable price;

5. Exemptions: batteries designed specifically to operate in a water environment; batteries used in professional medical imaging and radiotherapy equipment; batteries that need continuous power supply for safety or data integrity reasons.

5. Labelling, marking and information requirements (Article 13)

The EU has laid down detailed rules on battery surface information, the crossed-out wheelie bin symbol, QR codes and the digital passport, and the CE mark.

From 18 August 2026:

(1) The battery label shall contain the 10 items of general information in Annex VI A:

· Information on the manufacturer

· Battery category and battery identification information

· Place of production (geographical location of the battery manufacturing plant)

· Date of production (month and year)

· Weight

· Capacity

· Chemical composition

· Hazardous substances in the battery other than mercury, cadmium or lead

· Usable extinguishing agent

· Critical raw materials present in the battery in concentrations above 0.1% by weight

(2) Rechargeable portable batteries shall bear capacity information on the label;

(3) Non-rechargeable portable batteries shall bear information on the minimum average duration on the label and be marked "non-rechargeable";

(4) From 18 August 2025, labels shall bear the separate collection symbol:

Requirements for the separate collection symbol: it shall cover at least 3% of the area of the largest side of the battery and shall not exceed 5 x 5 cm in size. If the size of the battery is such that the separate collection symbol would be smaller than 0.47 x 0.47 cm, a separate collection symbol of at least 1 x 1 cm shall be printed on the packaging. All batteries containing more than 0.002% cadmium or more than 0.004% lead shall bear the relevant chemical symbol below the separate collection symbol, covering at least one quarter of the size of the wheelie bin symbol.

(5) After 18 February 2027, labels shall bear a QR code.

6. Conformity assessment procedure (Chapter 4)

To meet the substance restriction, performance and durability, and labelling, marking and information requirements, battery conformity assessment shall be carried out in accordance with the following procedures.

For batteries produced in series, the conformity assessment procedure is as follows (choose one of the two):

· Internal production control: technical documentation + records of manufacturing process monitoring + EU declaration of conformity;

· Quality assurance of the production process: technical documentation + EU declaration of conformity + factory quality assurance inspection and surveillance by a notified body.

For batteries not produced in series, the requirements are as follows (choose one of the two):

· Internal production control: technical documentation + records of manufacturing process monitoring + EU declaration of conformity;

· Conformity based on unit verification: technical documentation + EU declaration of conformity + notified body certificate.

7. EU declaration of conformity and CE marking (Chapter 4)

The new Battery Regulation requires that batteries bear the CE mark and be accompanied by an EU declaration of conformity before being placed on the market.

(1) The manufacturer shall draw up an EU declaration of conformity for each battery model and keep it together with the technical documentation for at least 10 years after the battery is placed on the market, for the use of national authorities. The EU declaration of conformity shall state that the substance restriction, performance and durability, and labelling and marking requirements have been met.

(2) CE marking

· The CE marking shall be clearly visible; where this cannot be guaranteed, it may be affixed to the packaging and the accompanying documents;

· The manufacturer shall affix the CE marking before the battery is placed on the market;

· Any pictograms or other marks may be added to supplement other information about the battery;

· Where a notified body is involved, the identification number of the notified body shall follow the CE marking.

8. Due diligence obligations

· The EU requires all economic operators to carry out due diligence, but this does not apply to economic operators with a net turnover of less than EUR 40 million in the financial year, or to remanufactured batteries.

· From 18 August 2025, economic operators shall assume the following obligations:

· Establish a battery due diligence policy that meets the requirements and disclose reports and information to suppliers, Member State supervisory authorities and the public;

· Identify adverse impacts and risks, establish response measures and improve risk management plans;

· Establish a grievance mechanism, including an early-warning risk awareness system and a remediation mechanism;

· Due diligence shall be verified by a notified body and audited periodically.

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