End-of-Life Vehicles (ELV) Directive

The European Directive on the treatment of End-of-Life Vehicles (ELV) was adopted in October 2000. It prohibits the use of Lead and Cadmium in vehicles with the exemption of certain applications.

EUROBAT stresses that automotive Lead-acid batteries are the most cost-effective and high-performance standard batteries in vehicles, and that no economically viable alternative will be available in the foreseeable future. These batteries are produced and recycled under high environmental standards in Europe.

EUROBAT would like to maintain the existing exemption for Lead-acid batteries in the current ELV Directive.

From a technical point of view, the safety features of Lead-acid batteries, such as low levels of self-discharging and broad application temperature interval limits, cannot be equalled by other electrochemical or physical energy storage systems. Even when mass-produced, alternative systems would be at least ten times more expensive than today's Lead-acid batteries.

Strict standards in collection ad recycling of Lead-acid batteries are well established in most European countries. Lead in automotive batteries can be recycled and most of the recovered lead is reintroduced in the production cycle of Lead-acid batteries.

EUROBAT proposes an exemption for Nickel-Cadmium batteries until 2010 in the ELV Directive to allow further development of electric vehicles.

On 22 May 2002, the Technical Adaptation Committee (TAC) of the European Commission took a decision to ban cadmium in batteries for electric vehicles by the end of 2005. Member states adopted the Commission proposal to continue the exemption of lead batteries and to set an exemption for NiCd batteries until 2008.

EUROBAT is working actively with the European Commission on the revision of the Annex II of the Directive and contributes to further studies on the subject of use of Lead and Cadmium in vehicles, particularly where automotive Lead-acid batteries and NiCd batteries for electric vehicles are concerned.

NiCd batteries are the most widespread batteries in electric vehicles in Europe and will remain so for many years. During their life cycles these batteries remain the property of a trade professional, contractually committed to take responsibility for spent batteries and to recycle them. Cadmium in these batteries can be fully recycled. Therefore, the ELV Directive should not prohibit the use of a substance that can be totally recovered.