Making sustainable batteries a reality – ECOS report

Despite their crucial role in increasing the integration of renewable energy sources in our economy and in decarbonising the transport sector, batteries do come at a cost to the environment. [...]

To reduce the environmental impact of batteries, they will need a longer lifetime; both an extended first life and a second, repurposed life. This needs to be addressed in ambitious policies and a coherent regulatory framework, supported by effective technical standards. [...]

This ECOS paper gives an overview of the methodologies and standards needed to make the Battery Regulation a reality and provides recommendations to both the European Commission and standardisers in charge of developing the deliverables under the standardisation request.

Below, we list main demands raised by ECOS:

• No further delays. Regulatory measures, underpinned by standards, should be implemented as soon as possible to cope with the surge in battery production, use and end-of-life treatment;
• Ambitious standards for reuse and repurposing. While we welcome the inclusion of deliverables on reuse and repurposing, standardisers should stay up to date with new emerging techniques and consider the second-hand EV market;
• We need harmonised data formats. The Commission should develop an implementing act on data formats for performance parameters as soon as possible, in consultation with standardisers who will develop the parameters;
• Robust safety requirements. Safety tests should be extended to include low-voltage applications. Research on adapted type tests for second-life batteries that are not destructive should be promoted and developed;
• A phase-out of single-use portable batteries. Single-use products should be eliminated, especially when reusable alternatives exist. The Commission should study the feasibility of phasing out single-use portable batteries. In the meantime, ambitious standards should be developed to exclude the least performing primary batteries from the market.

Access the report here.