EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542: what webshops need to know

On January 1, 2024, the EU's new Battery Regulation (Regulation 2023/1542) gradually came into force. It replaces the old Battery Directive 2006/66/EC and is one of the most sweeping pieces of environmental legislation to hit Europe in recent years. Whereas the old directive was primarily concerned with collection and disposal, the new regulation covers the entire battery lifecycle from raw material to recycling.

For you as a webshop operator, the difference is important. A regulation applies directly in all EU countries without national implementation. So the rules are the same in Denmark, Germany and France, and they significantly expand the WEEE battery obligation.

What does the regulation require?

The regulation introduces a number of new requirements that affect producers, importers and distributors of batteries. The most important points are:

• Digital battery passport for industrial and EV batteries. A digital product passport with information on chemistry, capacity, origin and recycled content. In force from 2027.
• Carbon footprint labeling so buyers can compare the climate impact of different batteries.
• Minimum recycled content requirements in new batteries for materials such as cobalt, lithium, lead and nickel.
• Stricter labeling with capacity, chemistry, CE mark and separate collection symbol.
• Requirement for replaceable batteries in many product categories. Consumers must be able to change the battery themselves without special tools.
• Extended producer responsibility for all battery types. Read more about producer responsibility and EPR.

Timeline

The regulation will be phased in gradually to give companies time to adapt:

• 2024-2027: Labeling requirements gradually come into force (capacity, chemistry, separate collection, CE).
• 2027: Digital battery passport becomes mandatory for EV and industrial batteries above a certain capacity.
• 2027: Requirement for portable batteries to be replaceable by the consumer.
• By 2030: Higher collection targets and recycled content requirements are continuously tightened.

Who is affected?

The regulation affects everyone who places batteries on the EU market. This does not only apply to pure battery shops. If you sell toys with built-in batteries, electronic gadgets, headphones, e-bikes, power banks or other products with batteries, you are also affected. The same applies if you import from outside the EU, as you will be considered a manufacturer.

The legislation interacts with the existing WEEE obligation and the new packaging law. We've written about both topics elsewhere: see the WEEE directive for online shops and packaging producer responsibility.

What does Shoporama support today?

To help you record and report correct battery data, Shoporama already has a number of fields on each product:

• Battery weight per product in grams.
• Battery type with a choice of Li-ion, Li-Po, NiMH, NiCd, Alkaline, Zinc-carbon, button cell, lead-acid and other.
• Integrated or removable battery so you can document whether the battery is fixed in the product or removable.
• Batch import via CSV with env_battery_weight, env_battery_type and env_battery_integrated fields so you can update the entire catalog at once.
• REST API with access to the same fields via the environment object on the product endpoint, allowing you to integrate with PIM systems and reporting solutions.

You can read more about the existing environmental data fields in the article Environmental data on products.

What's next?

We follow the legislation closely and expand the fields as new requirements come into force. Our intention is to support the core parts of the battery passport format as well as carbon footprint and recycled content information. We are not promising a specific date, but you can count on the relevant fields being ready when the requirements are.

Prepare your battery data now

Even if your product is not immediately covered by the battery passport, it's a good idea to get your battery data ready now. It reduces stress when the requirements hit and makes your product information more credible to customers who are looking for sustainability.

Go into admin and fill in the battery weight, battery type and integrated field on your products. Use the CSV import if you have many products. When the legislation really tightens from 2027, you'll already be ready.