Remove barriers to shipping black mass batteries for recycling within the EU

Eurometaux, the European association of producers and recyclers of non-ferrous metals, has long been committed to the institutions of the European Union so that all the issues that currently hinder the movement of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and their intermediate waste within EU borders.

Representing the industry of the sector – which includes battery manufacturers, suppliers of the raw materials necessary to make them and the entire recycling chain – Eurometaux underlined how the Union, starting from the adoption of the action plan strategy on batteries in 2019, has in fact paved the way for the construction of the value chain of this product, in particular by including batteries themselves among the main objectives within the European strategy on the availability of strategic raw materials. It is in fact essential that the precious materials used to make the batteries remain in Europe and are used for future production, making the continent less dependent on imports from third countries.

Given the shortage of critical raw materials used in zero-impact technologies, Eurometaux underlines that the EU should as a priority remove obstacles to rapid and optimal recycling of lithium-ion batteries within its territory, in line with the objective to establish a truly circular battery value chain.

Today, on the contrary, moving end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and their black mass within the Union is a complicated, long and expensive process, which prevents true intra-EU competition for recycling services. The main reasons are the divergent interpretation by Member States of the waste codes for these batteries, as well as the rigor, complication and “oddities” of the administrative procedures for obtaining the green light for shipment. If the situation is not changed, it will be difficult for Europe to achieve its objectives and cope with the high volumes of end-of-life batteries expected for the next decade.

For this reason, Eurometaux invites the Council and the European Parliament to include specific provisions in the new EU Regulation on Waste Shipments which:
– ensure an adequate update of the EU waste list, with dedicated codes for lithium-ion batteries and related intermediate waste streams (black mass), including a hazardous waste classification for black mass;
– ensure that these codes are fully harmonized at continental level;
– define a simpler and faster shipping procedure for this waste, intended for reuse within the Union.