The Association of European Automotive and Industrial Battery Manufacturers (EUROBAT) fears the European Commission will not extend the exemption for lead batteries from the End of Life Vehicles (ELV) Directive by another five years.
The Directive aims to ban lead in new cars. According to EUROBAT president Johannes Dempwolff, the extension period for the exemption for lead batteries will probably be less than five years.
“The five-year exemption was unusually long,” Dempwolff told BEST at ELBC. “It’s hard to predict but the next one may only be two or three years.”
The EU will decide on the exemption length for lead batteries by the end of this year.
Dempwolff said there is no sufficient substitution for lead yet; therefore lead technology is still needed. The ELV Directive will have a significant impact on the overall performance and cost of vehicles if existing products have to be replaced.
“The decision will be made by politicians from many countries with different industry needs. Sometimes regulations are established without thinking of the consequences, the industry needs more time to change the car design,” said Dempwolff.
“A ban of lead in new cars would accelerate the automotive aftermarket extensively”, he added.
Dempwolff said that the Commission’s REACH regulation that aims to ban certain chemicals, among them lead, might have a negative effect on the lead industry.