On Monday, 10 July 2023, the Council of the European Union adopted a new regulation that strengthens sustainability rules for batteries and waste batteries. This regulation covers the entire life cycle of batteries, ensuring their safety, sustainability and competitiveness from production to reuse and recycling.
Read the official press release
Recognising the vital role batteries play in the decarbonisation process and the transition towards zero-emission mobility, Teresa Ribera, Spanish Minister for the Ecological Transition reinforced the Presidency’s support for the regulation, which applies to all types of batteries: waste portable batteries, electric vehicle batteries, industrial batteries, starting, lightning and ignition (SLI) batteries primarily used in vehicles and machinery, as well as batteries for light means of transport like electric bikes, e-mopeds, and e-scooters.
“At the same time end-of-life batteries contain many valuable resources and we must be able to reuse those critical raw materials instead of relying on third countries for supplies. The new rules will promote the competitiveness of European industry and ensure new batteries are sustainable and contribute to the green transition.”
| Teresa Ribera, Spanish Minister for the Ecological Transition
To foster a circular economy, the regulation establishes requirements for the end-of-life phase, including collection targets and obligations, material recovery targets, and extended producer responsibility. Dedicated collection objectives for waste batteries used in light means of transport will be implemented, aiming at 51% by the end of 2028, respectively 61% by the end of 2031. Furthermore, the regulation sets mandatory minimum levels of recycled content for industrial batteries, SLI batteries and electric vehicle batteries. The following initial values have been established:
- 16% for cobalt
- 85% for lead
- 6% for lithium
- 6% for nickel
Additionally, batteries will also be required to hold documentation proving their recycled content.
To improve the functioning of the internal market for batteries and ensure fair competition, the regulation introduces safety, sustainability, and labelling requirements. It includes provisions for battery labelling and information disclosure, including details on battery components and recycled content. Additionally, an electronic “battery passport” and a QR code will be implemented to enhance traceability and transparency. These labelling requirements will take effect by 2026, while the QR code implementation is expected by 2027, providing member states and manufacturers with ample time to prepare.
This new regulation aims to mitigate environmental and social impacts throughout the battery’s life cycle. By establishing strict due diligence rules for operators, the EU is ensuring operators are bound to verify the source of raw materials used for batteries placed on the market. However, the regulation provides for an exemption for SMEs from the due diligence rules.
The adoption procedure for the regulation concluded with the Council’s vote, and it will now proceed to be signed by both the Council and the European Parliament. Following this, the regulation will be published in the European Union’s Official Journal and will enter into force 20 days thereafter.
Monitoring Crucial Secondary Legislation Linked to the Batteries Regulation
The new regulation aiming at strengthening sustainability rules for batteries and waste batteries will be supported by various secondary legislation pieces that play a crucial role in ensuring the comprehensive and effective implementation of the proposal’s objectives, particularly in important areas such as raw material sourcing, battery design, manufacturing processes, the second-life of a battery, and battery recycling and reuse.
One of the most urgent legislations is the carbon footprint (Art. 7) methodology for electric vehicles (EVs), which is under development with the JRC report and is expected by early 2024. Another relevant piece of secondary legislation is referring to recycling efficiencies (Art. 71), where the JRC is closely working with stakeholders in different expert groups.
The Cluster Hub “Production of raw materials for batteries from European resources” within the current legislative framework
As the implementation of the new battery regulation progresses, the Cluster Hub will continue to serve as a catalyst for advancements in battery recycling. By leveraging the collective efforts and expertise of participating projects, the platform acknowledges its pivotal role in driving the transition towards a more sustainable and circular future for the battery industry in Europe.
Get to know the EU-funded projects driving the innovations for the recycling of batteries: CROCODILE, RHINOCEROS, BATRAW, FREE4LIB, RESPECT, RELiEF and LiCORNE.
Join numerous EU-funded mineral raw materials projects for a one-and-a-half-day clustering event to discuss and exchange ideas on current technological challenges and topics within the raw materials sector.
Practical information
- Conference dates and times:
30 October 2023, 09.30 – 17.15 EET
31 October 2023, 09.00 – 12.30 EET - Venue: Santa´s Hotel Santa Claus, address: Korkalonkatu 29, 96200 Rovaniemi
(Google maps: Santa’s Hotel Santa Claus – Google Maps)
Transport to Levi leaves from in front of the Hotel Santa Claus 31st October at 13.30 EET
Closing date for Abstracts: 1 September 2023
Call for abstracts [accepted by 1 September 2023]
About the event
Currently the EU is highly dependent on a small number of countries for raw materials, especially the critical raw materials that it needs for strategic value chains such as e-mobility, batteries, and renewable energy. Europe’s opportunity to become self-sufficient, resilient, sustainable and responsible in critical minerals supply from its own resources is a reachable goal due to its geological setting and significant mineral endowment.
However, many of the critical raw materials do not form their own mineral deposits, but rather are produced as by-products, associated with other primary commodity mines. This switch to a multi-element way of mining will demand new ways to conduct exploration activities in general, as exploration must nowadays shift to the more integrated point of view of mineral systems. There is also a need to develop innovative exploration concepts and data analysis tools to enhance the probability of finding new sources of critical raw materials for the EU’s economy.
Thirteen EU-funded raw materials projects EIS, AGEMERA, CIRAN, EXCEED, GOLDENEYE, GREENPEG, M4MINING, MaDiTraCe, MinExTarget, MultiMiner, S34I, SEEMS DEEP and SEMACRET, as well as the University of Queensland (Australia) are partnering up to organize a one-and-a-half-day clustering event “European Union SuperCluster Lapland Geoconference”, which will take place on Monday 30th and Tuesday 31st October 2023 in Rovaniemi, Finland. With this event, the organisers hope to bring together a wide range of stakeholders, such as the European Commission, EU projects and other initiatives related to the raw materials sector; regional authorities; industrial representatives; exploration companies as well as other interested stakeholders, to discuss and exchange ideas on current technological challenges and topics within the sector.
The SuperCluster event will be organized just before the official start of the 14th Fennoscandian Exploration and Mining (FEM) 2023 conference (Levi, Kittilä, Finland. Home – FEM (femconference.fi)). Planning for transport from Rovaniemi to FEM Conference in Levi is underway. This is for those participants who would like to attend both events (see map here: Rovaniemi – Levi Summit – Google Maps). The FEM conference is one of the most significant and largest mining industry events in Europe.
The latest live conference FEM 2019 brought together 1215 participants from 32 different countries and more than 400 organizations to Lapland.
The expected number of SuperCluster participants is about 100 persons, and we hope to attract people and companies who usually do not attend the FEM conference. The main target audience are European Commission, EU projects and other initiatives related to the raw materials sector; regional authorities; industrial representatives; exploration companies as well as other interested stakeholders.
This meeting will comprise 20-minute oral sessions, poster space and discussion time to maximise the benefits to all participants. No keynote talks are planned – the focus will be on EU-funded projects exclusively.
The conference is free-of-charge! Also, lunches and conference dinner is free for the registered participants.
Call for abstracts [accepted by 1 September 2023]
Monday, 14 November, during the first day of the 2022 edition of the Raw Materials Week, eight EU funded projects participated in the Clustering workshop Production of raw materials for batteries from European resources.
Due to the increasing usage of batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) and energy storage systems generated by the EU’s mission to limit climate change, the demand for many metals relevant for batteries is expected to grow by more than 1000% by 2050. Held in a hybrid format, the workshop provided participants with the opportunity to discover innovation routes followed by the clustering projects on their pathway to secure sustainable and responsible sourcing of raw materials for battery production.
The objective of the workshop was to create an environment that could foster knowledge exchange on different approaches for the recycling and recovery for battery applications. Co-organised by CROCODILE, RHINOCEROS and LiCORNE, with the participation of the EU funded projects BATRAW, RESPECT, RELiEF, FREE4LIB and ENICON, the workshop gathered nearly 100 organisations driving the production and the recycling of raw materials for battery applications from primary and secondary resources.
Nearly three hours packed with presentations provided stakeholders with essential information about each project, from the main objectives and expected outcomes, to the lessons drawn from the activities carried out.
The CROCODILE project – First of a kind commercial Compact system for the efficient Recovery of Cobalt Designed with novel Integrated Leading technologies– was presented by Dr. Lourdes Yurramendi (TECNALIA). As the most mature project, CROCODILE’s keynote focused on valuable findings and learnings regarding different aspects of the project: the samples treatment, the selection of flowsheets, the life cycle analysis (LCA) and cost (LCC) of the pilot unit, to name only a few. Later on Monday, the project was also featured as a Success Story in the Raw Materials Week, where the presentation video was played for the first time.
Download the CROCODILE presentation
Sonia Matencio Lloberas (LEITAT) presented the BATRAW project – Recycling of end-of-life battery packs for domestic raw material supply chains and enhanced circular economy. This project will develop and demonstrate two innovative pilot systems for sustainable recycling and end-of-life (EoL) management of EV batteries. Depending on the results obtained, these technologies could be extended to other types of batteries to recover all the metals and materials contained: i.e., cobalt, nickel, manganese, lithium, graphite, aluminium, and copper.
Download the BATRAW presentation
Nader Akil (PNO Innovation Belgium) explained the mission and the motivation behind the RHINOCEROS project – Batteries reuse and direct production of high performances cathodic and anodic materials and other raw materials from batteries recycling using low cost and environmentally friendly technologies. As attractive energy storage technologies, Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have proven to be a reliable solution, especially when it comes to the production of low-emission fleets (EVs), followed by stationary storage market and consumer electronics. According to the Strategic research Agenda for Batteries, by 2030, the global demand for LIBs is estimated to increase 14 times and the EU could account for 17%. The battery market is expected to reach 250 billion EUR/year by 2025, while the production in Europe is foreseen to rise to 300 GWh/year as of 2030. This generates opportunities for projects like RHINOCEROS to develop economically and environmentally viable routes for re-using and recycling EoL EVs and stationary energy storage Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs).
Download the RHINOCEROS presentation
Similar to the RHINOCEROS project, FREE4LIB [Feasible recovery of critical raw materials through a new circular ecosystem for a Li-ion battery cross-value chain in Europe] aims to simplify the recycling process of LIBs, as a more resilient and environmentally friendly alternative to the current linear economic model – take, make, dispose. The project, presented by Juan Castro (CARTIF), will develop six technologies at TRL5 to achieve new sustainable and efficient processes to recycle EoL LIBs: dismantling, pre-treatment and four materials recovery processes aiming to reach highly efficient materials recovery (metal oxides, metals and polymers). Additional to the recycling solutions, FREE4LIB will also target three processes dealing with metals and polymers re-using and electrode synthesis to re-manufacture new LIBs.
Download the FREE4LIB presentation
Justo Garcia (Orano Mining) presented the RESPECT project. Funded by the Horizon Europe research and innovation programme, the project aims to strengthen expertise in techniques and the value chain for the recycling of electric vehicle batteries at European level. The RESPECT project will develop a global process encompassing a process-chain flexible enough to treat all kinds of batteries in closed loop. Precisely, researchers will explore two recycling routes: full hydrometallurgy and direct recycling, and an improved Life Cycle Assessment of each recycling segment to reduce emissions, health risks and safety issues.
Download the RESPECT presentation
Recently launched, the LiCORNE project– Lithium recovery and battery-grade materials production from European resources, was introduced by Alan González Morales (PNO Innovation Belgium), who explained briefly the project’s ambitious objectives to establish the first-ever Li supply chain in Europe. With five large primary resource owners (including one of the world leaders in Li production) involved in the consortium, the project aims to increase European Li processing and refining capacity for producing battery-grade chemicals from ores, geothermal and continental brines, tailings and off specification battery cathode materials (waste).
Download the LiCORNE presentation
Gabriel Hidalgo, from the Recycling Unit of Avesta Battery & Energy Engineering (ABEE), outlined the objectives and the impact expected from the RELiEF project – Recycling of Lithium from Secondary Raw Materials and Further. Expected to boost the recycling industry, this project aims to reduce Li waste by more than 70%, and to transform recycled resources into high value battery-grade material. Relying on a very diversified consortium, RELiEF will additionally propose a new business model for materials acquisition and processing, taking into consideration environmental and social sustainability.
Download the RELiEF presentation
Sofía Riaño Torres (KU LEUVEN) presented the last EU project, ENICON– Sustainable processing of Europe’s low-grade sulphidic and lateritic nickel/cobalt ores and tailings into battery-grade metals -Launched in June 2022, the project aims to improve the refining capacity of domestic and imported low-grade Ni/Co. ENICON’s metal recovery route using hydrochloric acid dispenses with the old-school hydro-based approach that involves continuously precipitating and redissolving metals. Thus, it reduces the amount of chemicals needed for metal dissolution, which results in the production of potentially harmful waste streams. More information about the project in the joint documentary commissioned together with EU funded project NEMO: Responsible Mining in Europe.
Download the ENICON presentation
The workshop in figures
Although only in its first edition, the clustering workshop Production of raw materials for batteries from European resources attracted a diversified range of stakeholders. Counting more than 150 people registered, the audience was dominated by research organisations (26,97%), the rest of the audience being equally distributed between academia (17,76%), large companies (17,11%), SMEs (16,45%), EU institutions (4,61%) and other stakeholders addressing raw materials – national and regional administrative authorities, logistics service provides, investing companies, trade associations, NGOs, consulting companies (17,76%). Participants are located mainly in Europe but a percentage of nearly 20% shows growing enthusiasm from third countries, such as Turkey, Canada, South Korea, Chile, etc.
Exploring future clustering ideas
With the real peak of valuable outcomes from H2020 projects coming now, the aim goes beyond informing about the progress achieved to date. Building on the knowledge generated so far, new projects need to address different challenges, such as the high cost of exploration activities, the geological uncertainty, and the necessity to develop improved processing and refining technologies for better recovery of minerals and metals from side streams and industrial waste. Such challenges require close collaboration on all levels and across the entire battery value chain.
The last part of the event featured an interactive session, which included seven questions scrutinising stakeholders’ interest for similar clustering initiatives. With favourable answers and reviews, the Production of raw materials for batteries from European resources could turn into a permanent clustering hub fostering knowledge exchange and stimulating synergies between projects.
More information about the event can be found here.
Website managed by PNO Innovation