Why Verification Matters More Than Ever

The Digital Battery Passport (DBP) is redefining how battery data must be collected, governed and exchanged across global battery value chains. Under Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are legally responsible for the accuracy of all DBP information - regardless of whether it originates inside the EU or from suppliers in Asia, the Americas or elsewhere (as long as the product ends up in the EU).

As a result, verification is becoming the decisive factor for compliance and market access. Collecting data is no longer sufficient. Organisations must be able to demonstrate that the data they report is accurate, consistent, traceable, and defensible under regulatory scrutiny.

The Growing Gap Between Data Availability and Data Reliability

Many organisations are already assembling the data required for the Digital Battery Passports (DBP): material composition, carbon footprint, performance, safety, recyclability metrics, circularity information, and more.

However, the challenge is not simply having the data - it is ensuring that it is accurate, consistent, traceable, and aligned with the regulation’s definitions.

Battery supply chains involve multiple actors who use different systems, vocabularies and assumptions. Data often exists in silos or unverified formats. Without validation, inconsistencies remain hidden until they cause audit failures or block market entry.

Why Verification Is the Backbone of DBP Compliance

Verification ensures that DBP information follows approved calculation rules, reflects true lifecycle history, and can withstand regulatory scrutiny. It also provides the audit trail needed for transparency across ownership changes, from manufacturing to repurposing and recycling.

For OEMs, verification becomes the safeguard that protects against:

• Incorrect supplier statements
• Incompatible data formats
• Misaligned calculation methods
• Incomplete or untraceable information

In short, collection provides data; verification provides confidence.

Technical and Organisational Barriers to Verification

Reliable verification requires digital systems capable of tracking provenance, applying standardised semantics, and ensuring interoperability across supply-chain actors.

For many companies - especially SMEs or suppliers outside the EU - this level of digital maturity is still developing.

Verification also relies on clear governance: who is responsible for confirming which data, how updates are validated, and how evidence is stored. Without this governance, even correct data becomes unreliable over time.

How BASE Supports Robust Verification

BASE addresses verification challenges through coordinated work across architecture, semantics, indicators and real-world pilots.

The project integrates:

Unified vocabularies and ontologies for consistent interpretation

Verifiable calculation pathways for State-of-X, circularity, and ESG metrics

Governance logic for data provenance, access rights and update rules

Demonstrators in automotive, marine and stationary contexts to test verification under real operating conditions

By designing DBP structures that embed verification at every stage, BASE helps organisations shift from fragmented records to trustworthy lifecycle intelligence.

From Compliance Obligation to Strategic Advantage

Verification is not only essential for entering the EU market, but also delivers broader operational and strategic benefits. Accurate, auditable data improves safety, supports reliable second-life decisions, reduces regulatory risk, and strengthens trust with customers, partners and authorities. Over time, high-quality verified data becomes an asset that enables new circular business models, optimised recycling, and more transparent global supply chains.

Looking Ahead

As 2027 approaches, battery passport compliance will increasingly depend on an organisation’s ability to verify what it reports. Data collection opens the door; verification determines whether the passport is accepted.

Through the BASE project, industry stakeholders are building the foundations for a verification-ready future - one where battery lifecycle data is not only available but accurate, aligned, and resilient enough to support the transition toward a circular and transparent battery ecosystem.

The BASE project has received funding from the Horizon Europe Framework Programme (HORIZON) Research and Innovation Actions under grant agreement No. 101157200.