⚖️ Which law requires the Battery Passport—and when?

🔋 Battery Regulation (EU) 2023/1542

From 18 February 2027, every:

• Light means of transport (LMT) battery
• Industrial battery > 2 kWh
• Electric vehicle (EV) battery
  placed on the market or put into service must be accompanied by an electronic record: a battery passport.

🧩 ESPR alignment (DPP framework)

The Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) establishes general DPP principles and triggers delegated acts that define detailed, product-group requirements (data scope, access rules, technical requirements, and granularity).

👥 Who is responsible? (REO – Responsible Economic Operator)

Under ESPR concepts, a Responsible Economic Operator (REO) can include manufacturers, authorized representatives, importers, distributors, dealers, and fulfillment service providers.

REO responsibilities typically include:

• 🆔 ensuring a Product UID is created and attached via a data carrier
• 📤 ensuring mandatory DPP content is uploaded and accessible
• 🔄 managing controlled updates across the lifecycle (e.g., repairs, status changes), where applicable

Lifecycle complexity to plan for: refurbished/repurposed/remanufactured cases may trigger new responsibilities and potentially a new DPP and/or Product UID, depending on how “new product” status is defined in delegated rules.

🧱 What goes into a Battery DPP? (Core data blocks)

Battery passports combine ESPR attribute groups with battery-specific fields.

A practical structure is:

🆔 1) Identification & accountability

• Battery Passport ID (unique identifier for the battery + passport record)
• Battery identification: model + batch/serial/product number (as required)
• REO details: name, address, web/email, unique operator identifier
• Manufacturer identification (unique operator identifier)
• Manufacturing date (month/year; often via codes)
• Manufacturing place and facility identifier (supports traceability)

🧰 2) General characteristics & status

• Battery category / intended use
• Battery weight (and module/cell weights when relevant)
• Lifecycle status (e.g., original, repurposed, reused, remanufactured, waste)

✅ 3) Compliance, labels & certifications

• EU Declaration of Conformity (and ID where required)
• Test report results supporting compliance (commonly restricted access)
• Symbols/labels in machine-readable form:
• separate collection / recycling indication (where applicable)
• meaning of labels/symbols
• cadmium/lead symbols if thresholds are exceeded (plus text equivalents)

🧪 4) Materials, chemistry & substances

• Critical raw materials above 0.1% by weight
• Battery chemistry: cathode/anode/electrolyte materials + composition (% mass fraction)
• Material identifiers (e.g., CAS numbers)
• Hazardous substances above 0.1% w/w:
• CLP hazard classes/categories, CAS + CLP index
• location within (sub-)components (with unique IDs)
• concentration ranges and impact statements (REACH/GHS-aligned)

🌍 5) Carbon footprint & environmental performance

• Total carbon footprint: CO₂e per kWh over expected service life
• Footprint per lifecycle stage (raw materials, manufacturing, distribution, end-of-life)
• Performance class per plant
• Link to public carbon footprint study (where required)

🔎 6) Due diligence & disclosures

• Due diligence report: policy, risk management, third-party verification summary
• Third-party supply chain assurances/certifications
• EU Taxonomy disclosure availability
• Sustainability report availability

♻️ 7) Circularity, removal, repair & end-of-life

• Manual for removal from appliance (tools, fasteners, sequence, safety)
• Pack disassembly/dismantling manual (incl. diagrams where required)
• Spare part sources + part numbers (where applicable)
• Safety information: extinguishing agent + safety measures considering status/composition
• Recycled content shares (pre/post-consumer) for Ni / Co / Li / Pb
• Renewable content share (where applicable)
• Take-back, separate collection, recycling operation details + end-user guidance

🔐 Access levels: what is public vs restricted?

Battery DPP is typically tiered:

• 👁️ Public (model-level): identification, safe-use info, key sustainability attributes
• 🧑‍🔧 Legitimate interest + Commission: deeper composition and disassembly instructions
• 🏛️ Notified bodies / market surveillance / Commission: restricted compliance evidence (e.g., test reports)
• 🔁 Individual product data (legitimate interest): serial-level lifecycle status and controlled updates

This balances transparency with protection of know-how and safe handling requirements.

🏷️ Data carriers: QR/RFID + online marketplace requirement

📌 Data carrier basics

The data carrier containing the Product UID must be physically attached to the battery, packaging, or documentation (as defined by relevant rules).

Typical options:

• QR code (low cost, universal scanning)
• RFID/electronic tag (industrial automation, logistics)

Key selection criteria: durability, readability, storage capacity, data protection, environmental impact, and implementation guidelines.

🛒 Online sales

For online marketplaces, DPP access must still be available via a clickable link or a digital copy of the carrier.

If a link is used, it should be a canonical URI to avoid duplication and ambiguity.

🔁 How the Battery DPP works in practice (scan → resolve → permission → retrieve)

A typical access journey:

1- 📲 Scan the QR/RFID to extract the Product UID

2- 🔗 Perform UID → URI transformation if the UID isn’t already a URI

3- 🌐 Use a resolver to locate the right data endpoint

4- 🔐 Enforce role-based access via a Policy Decision Point (PDP)

5- 🗃️ Retrieve DPP data from decentralized DPP data repositories, supported by backup providers and, where needed, archives for long-term availability

🧩 System components you should plan for (beyond the data)

🗃️ EU Registry (governance node)

ESPR concepts include an EU Registry that records essential identifiers (product/operator/facility and related entries) and supports standardized onboarding via APIs.

Many implementations also treat the registry as a “pointer layer” to help discovery in a decentralized ecosystem.

☁️ DPP-as-a-Service

Certified service providers may offer DPP storage, processing, and backup services, reducing operational burden while meeting continuity expectations.

🔄 Data spaces (trusted exchange)

A data space can provide a secure framework for standardized, trusted data exchange between stakeholders, using common protocols and formats—useful when multiple parties contribute lifecycle events.

✅ Validation & data quality (knowledge graph + SHACL)

Many DPP designs represent the passport as a knowledge graph (RDF).

SHACL validation can then enforce:

• required fields and relationships (templates/shapes)
• value constraints and unit consistency
• pre-validation by REOs before publishing
• consistent checks by authorities during market surveillance

This reduces incomplete passports, mismatched units, and missing substance declarations—common sources of compliance risk.

🏗️ Architecture options: HTTP URIs vs DIDs

🔗 HTTP URI-based access (web-first)

• Uses HTTP/HTTPS and resolvers (easy to deploy, familiar)
• Supports UID→URI transformation (including patterns like GTIN→URI)
• Strong fit for retail and online marketplace discovery
• Dependency consideration: relies on DNS/domain ownership for resolution

🪪 DID-based access (identity-first)

• A DID is a URI that resolves to a DID Document (verification methods + service endpoints)
• Supports role-based authorization using Actor DIDs and Verifiable Credentials (VCs)
• Designed for stronger decentralization and resilience (less DNS dependence)
• Often used when restricted-access roles (recyclers, authorities, notified bodies) need cryptographic proof of entitlement

🧭 Battery Passport readiness checklist

✅ Confirm scope: LMT / industrial >2 kWh / EV and model vs item-level strategy

✅ Map required fields: identity, composition, hazardous substances, carbon footprint, due diligence, circularity

✅ Define identifiers: Product UID + REO ID + Facility ID; URI/DID strategy

✅ Choose carrier: QR/RFID durability and placement + online listing link plan

✅ Set access tiers and policies: public vs legitimate interest vs authorities

✅ Integrate systems: ERP/PLM/PIM + evidence repositories

✅ Implement validation: SHACL templates + approvals + audit trail

✅ Plan continuity: decentralized repository + certified backup + archive approach

Why ComplyMarket is exceptional for Battery Digital Product Passports

ComplyMarket supports organizations implementing Battery Digital Product Passports through an integrated Compliance Management Platform—helping structure required battery data, manage evidence and updates, and operationalize role-based access and governance across the DPP lifecycle.