On Thursday 17 March, the Environment Ministers of the EU Member States adopted their position (‘general approach’) on the proposed regulation on batteries and battery waste, unanimously confirming the EU Council’s support for the compromise concocted by the French Presidency.
This opens the way for negotiations with the European Parliament.
This emblematic text of the circular economy was presented in December 2020 under the German Presidency (see EUROPE 12620/13). The general approach of the Environment Council crowns 14 months of successful negotiations and endorses the agreement reached on 11 March by the EU27 ambassadors (see EUROPE B 12912A18, 12909A13).
The future regulation aims to reduce the environmental and social impacts of batteries throughout their life cycle, from raw material sourcing, production and use, to recycling, as well as to create a truly ‘made in Europe’ sustainable battery market, which can contribute to the EU’s strategic autonomy - a major challenge that was strongly emphasised by the Ministers.
The EU has a limited supply of rare minerals, such as cobalt, lithium, nickel and lead, and the ‘Versailles Declaration’ identified critical raw materials as one of the sectors requiring action to reduce the EU’s strategic dependence on foreign powers (see EUROPE 12909/1).
“With the adoption of this regulation, the Member States have laid the foundations of a sector worthy of the 21st century, i.e. a solid sector that is useful for the decarbonisation of our economies by making electric mobility possible, an environmentally responsible sector because it is based on the circular economy, a strong sector on a global scale because it provides the means to reduce our dependence on the supply of critical materials, a sector that creates millions of jobs”, the French Minister for Ecological Transition, Barbara Pompili, was pleased to say.
The EU Council retains and strengthens the core principles of the Commission’s proposal, including the ‘battery passport’, strict restrictions on hazardous substances, a carbon footprint for batteries, extended producer responsibility, a requirement for new batteries to contain recycled material, and the introduction of due diligence for supply chains.
However, the general approach postpones the implementation timetables.
All Ministers welcomed the dual legal basis (Internal Market AND Environment) and the amendment of Chapter VII (Battery Waste Management), which will allow the Waste Framework Directive (2008/98) and its minimum criteria to continue to apply so as not to abandon “well-functioning national extended producer responsibility systems”.
The Belgian, Finnish and Swedish Ministers expressed the importance they attach to the REACH and CLP Regulations for the chemical safety of batteries, considering them to be “the cornerstone” of EU legislation in this area. The Belgian Minister also stressed the importance of ensuring the export of safe and sustainable batteries.
Some delegations (e.g. Germany, Austria, Luxembourg, Sweden) would have liked to see more ambition, especially regarding the implementation timetable, but they endorsed the compromise, counting on the negotiations with Parliament to raise the bar.
In contrast, for Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovenia, the general approach of the EU Council is the maximum acceptable to give economic operators time to adapt. Romania has called for a solution to the flow of second-hand vehicles exported from richer Member States.
Luxembourg hopes to increase the levels of collection and recycling rates, but also of recycled content of batteries - something Greece does not want.
Negotiations with Parliament, which adopted a very ambitious position on 10 March (see EUROPE 12908/12, 12907/14), will be difficult. The level of ambition, the implementation timetables, and the management of chemical risks will be the main issues to be decided.
European Commissioner for Environment Virginijus Sinkevičius welcomed “a broad but clear mandate”. However, he clarified that the Commission kept its position on Chapter VII and the addition of the ‘Environment’ legal basis, stressing that “such flexibility given to Member States should not hamper the internal market”.
See the EU Council’s general approach (in French): https://aeur.eu/f/sf (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)