EU Actively Pursues Battery Circular Utilization Policies such as Battery Passports and CRMA
Environment Minister Han Hwa-jin, “Will Expand Infrastructure for Transition to Circular Economy”

Experts have suggested that the importance of circular use of electric vehicle batteries is being emphasized due to the EU carbon footprint, stricter environmental regulations on products, and the goal of Net-Zero by 2050, and that weight should be placed on policies that enhance resource efficiency and circularity throughout the entire resource lifecycle.

At the 'Forum to Discuss Measures to Promote the Circular Use of Future Waste Resources,' hosted by People Power Party lawmaker Park Dae-soo and organized by the Korea Environment Corporation on the 20th, Cho Ji-hye, Director of the Korea Environment Institute, stated that many countries are actively adopting policies to recycle waste electric vehicle batteries, which are inevitably generated as the electric vehicle industry develops, taking into account eco-friendliness and economic feasibility.

The demand for lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles is expected to reach 1,399 GWh in 2025, which is 52 times the 26.9 GWh recorded in 2015.

There is a growing call to recycle used electric vehicle batteries, considering their eco-friendliness and economic feasibility, as batteries account for about 30% of the electric vehicle's lifecycle carbon footprint and more than 30% of the electric vehicle's price.

Jo Ji-hye, Head of the Environmental Research Institute at the Korea Environment Institute, who served as a presenter at the forum, spoke on "Domestic and International Policy Trends Regarding the Circular Use of Waste Electric Vehicle Batteries," stating, "Countries such as Europe and the United States [regarding] batteries from environmental and economic perspectives“We are strengthening our circular utilization policy,” he said, adding, “A circular economy is important, which involves extracting rare metals through recycling and using them in cell manufacturing, or extending the value of products through reuse and remanufacturing.”

▲ Jo Ji-hye, Director of the Korea Environment Institute

Starting next year, the European Union will implement a 'battery passport' policy that includes information on the materials used in batteries, their carbon footprints, and renewable materials.

The information included in the 'battery passport' must be designed to allow access to those who require battery information for operations such as dismantling, repair, remanufacturing, and reuse, and to be interoperable with other digital product passports under EU laws related to ecodesign.

Through battery passports based on international standards, we are identifying the entire lifecycle of batteries from production and consumption to disposal and recycling, and establishing systems such as collecting battery information and linking it with carbon footprint certification.

The draft EU new battery regulation announced in 2020 requires battery sustainability that considers the carbon footprint of battery manufacturing, securing the ethical supply of raw materials, and promoting reuse, remanufacturing, and recycling, and the EU battery regulation passed at the plenary session of the European Parliament last June aims to prevent and reduce the negative environmental impact of batteries and to ensure a safe and sustainable value chain for all batteries.

One of the EU policies attracting attention regarding battery recycling is the Critical Materials Act (CRMA), announced last March.

battery It sets a goal to recycle at least 15% of the EU's annual consumption to improve the raw material supply chain and increase the stability of raw material procurement, and includes nickel, lithium, manganese, and natural graphite as strategic raw materials.

Our country is also actively working to revitalize the circular economy.

In his earlier congratulatory remarks, Environment Minister Han Hwa-jin stated, “Our country is also strengthening its institutional foundation and policy efforts to promote the transition to a circular economy,” adding, “We will expand the infrastructure to revitalize the circular use of future waste resources.”

In December 2020, Korea presented the revitalization of the circular economy as one of the 10 major tasks of the '2050 Carbon Neutrality Promotion Strategy' and designated it as a core task.

Subsequently, the 'Framework Act on Carbon Neutrality' included provisions for the revitalization of the waste recycling system and the remanufacturing industry, and the Act on the Promotion of Transition to a Circular Economy Society is scheduled to be implemented in 2024.

It took a full step into the circular economy by announcing the 'New Industrial Growth Strategy for the Revitalization of the Circular Economy' last June, which establishes a foundation for reuse and recycling to support this and promotes the production and use of recycled materials.

Director Jo Ji-hye emphasized three policy tasks to promote the circular use of electric vehicle batteries: securing supplies of recycled raw materials, establishing an integrated management system, and supporting the revitalization of the battery reuse and recycling market.

It was emphasized that it is important to calculate the available spent battery capacity, forecast the recycling efficiency of domestic materials among battery pack components, and secure supplies of recycled raw materials, while also ensuring safety and establishing an integrated management system when expanding into the private sector.

Regarding support for revitalizing the battery reuse and recycling market, Director Jo Ji-hye stated, “In the process of battery usage "Battery history management is necessary to identify any issues that arise," they stated, adding, "We must ensure history verification and distribution safety so that information on the entire lifecycle of used batteries can be transparently shared among the Battery Industrialization Center, dismantling operators, and distributors."