The world is moving towards sustainability as a whole. Part of this shift is witnessing an increased demand for electric vehicles, renewable energy storage, and consumer electronics, resulting in a surge in battery usage. Driving sustainability with battery passports, this transformation emphasises the need for transparent, traceable, and environmentally responsible battery lifecycles that support a greener future.
With this increase in demand, manufacturers and policymakers are under pressure to ensure battery supply chains are both transparent and sustainable. Digital battery passport is the solution to supply chain transparency, acting as a powerful tool to support responsible sourcing, improve recycling practices, and promote circular economy principles.
In this article, we’ll get a clear overview of what battery passports are, why they matter, and how they’re contributing to building a sustainable battery supply chain.
Why Battery Supply Chains Need to Change
The battery industry depends heavily on critical raw materials such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel. These materials are often mined in regions with environmental degradation and human rights concerns. Moreover, the rising demand for batteries has increased the risk of material shortages, increased waste generation, and carbon emissions linked to extraction and production.
According to the International Energy Agency, demand for these minerals could quadruple by 2040 if the global shift to clean energy continues as projected. Without traceability and accountability, battery supply chains remain vulnerable to ethical, environmental, and economic risks.
This is where battery passports become critical. They make it possible to track a battery’s journey from source to end-of-life, providing verifiable data that can help reduce negative impacts and increase the recovery and reuse of valuable materials.
A Key Feature of EU Regulation
In August 2023, the European Union adopted the Battery Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 on batteries and waste batteries. This regulation makes digital battery passports mandatory for all rechargeable industrial and electric vehicle batteries with a capacity above 2 kWh starting from February 2027.
Digital battery passports are meant to enhance transparency, support environmental and social governance, and facilitate circularity across battery lifecycles. The European Commission has made it clear that digital passports are essential for improving sustainability standards and achieving climate targets.
Supporting Circular Economy Goals
Battery passports play a vital role in promoting the circular economy by enabling more efficient battery reuse, repurposing, and recycling. With access to accurate data, manufacturers can design better products, recyclers can process batteries more safely and efficiently, and users can make informed choices about disposal or second-life applications.
The passport also enables extended producer responsibility by ensuring that all actors in the battery’s lifecycle are aware of their obligations and opportunities to reduce waste, emissions, and resource dependency.
How Technology Makes This Possible
Digital battery passports rely on advanced technologies to function effectively. Distributed ledger technologies, like the blockchain, ensure that the data is secure and tamper-proof. Cloud computing and connected sensors allow real-time updates on battery health and usage. Ontologies and data standards make it easier to integrate information from different actors along the supply chain.
The aim is to build a trusted system where battery information flows seamlessly between manufacturers, suppliers, recyclers, and regulators, without compromising privacy or intellectual property.
BASE: Leading the Way in Battery Passport Development
One of the most significant initiatives advancing battery passports in Europe is the BASE Project (Battery Passport for Resilient Supply Chain and Implementation of Circular Economy).
Funded under the EU’s Horizon Europe programme, BASE is developing a fully functional digital battery passport platform in line with European regulation.
The BASE project is addressing the full scope of challenges across performance monitoring, data interoperability, material traceability, and ESGE (Environmental, Social, Governance, and Economic) compliance. The project’s approach combines physical tracking of raw materials through mass balancing with digital verification powered by distributed ledger technology. This ensures data authenticity, prevents duplication, and enables a privacy-first design.
Importantly, BASE is also developing methodologies to calculate battery performance, durability, and safety indicators. It is establishing standards for evaluating second-life potential and recycling efficiency, helping to reduce waste and increase resource recovery. These innovations will ultimately increase the useful service life of batteries, cut down carbon emissions, and reduce the EU’s dependence on critical raw materials from third countries.
The real-world value of BASE’s work will be demonstrated through four industrial pilot use cases. These will show how the battery passport can be applied across different stages of the value chain, from production and distribution to collection, repurposing, and recycling.
Closing Thoughts
Battery passports are becoming the key towards building responsible and circular battery supply chains. With their help, companies can trace material origins, monitor performance, and support environment-friendly end-of-life solutions. In essence, they’re opening up new opportunities for innovation, sustainability, and ethical business practices.
And with projects like BASE, the European Union is setting a leading example for how digital tools can transform the industry for the better. As the demand for batteries continues to grow, initiatives like BASE will ensure that sustainability and resilience are built into every step of the battery life cycle.
References
- European Commission. New EU Rules Governing Batteries. Retrieved from: http://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/waste-and-recycling/batteries_en
- EUR-Lex. Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 on Batteries and Waste Batteries. Retrieved from: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32023R1542
- BASE Project – Digital Battery Passport for Circularity and Sustainability. Retrieved from: https://base-batterypassport.com/
- International Energy Agency. The Role of Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions. Retrieved from: https://www.iea.org/reports/the-role-of-critical-minerals-in-clean-energy-transitions