WRITTEN QUESTION E-1152/02

by Dominique Vlasto (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(22 April 2002)

Subject: Exemption for nickel-cadmium batteries on electric vehicles within the provisions of Annex II to Directive 2000/53/EC on end-of-life vehicles

Directive 2000/53/EC(1) on end-of-life vehicles stipulates that materials and components of vehicles put on the market after 1 July 2003 must not contain lead, mercury, cadmium or hexavalent chromium other than in cases listed in Annex II.

In a press release issued on 6 March 2002 the Commission announced its decision to propose prohibiting cadmium batteries in electric vehicles as from the end of 2005. However, the proposed revision of Annex II provides that, in order to ensure that electric vehicles continue to be available, the Commission must analyse the possibility of substituting cadmium in the batteries of electric vehicles and publish its conclusions by 31 December 2004, on which date a decision will be taken to extend the marketing of nickel-cadmium batteries for electric vehicles. Will the Commission therefore explain why this press release only partially reflects the decision taken and announces a ban which may be reconsidered in 2004 if no alternative technologies are available?

Furthermore, while 21 categories of materials and components are listed in Annex II, the press release only refers to the proposal on nickel-cadmium batteries. Will the Commission explain why it has not referred to its proposals on the other categories?

Directive 2000/53/EC already stipulated, with regard to cadmium in the batteries of electric vehicles, that the Commission should assess what substitute products were available and take account of the need to ensure that such vehicles continued to be available.

Will the Commission also explain its reasons for believing that possible restrictions on the marketing of nickel-cadmium batteries in 2005 will not jeopardise the future of electric vehicles, given that manufacturers developing new generations of such vehicles had asked for an exemption until 2008?

Will it state why nickel-cadmium batteries are not treated in the same way as lead batteries, the only other technology which is industrially available for electric vehicles, namely on the basis of an exemption without time limits?

Lastly, will the Commission state what manufacturer, in which Member State, can currently supply a 100 % electric vehicle running on a battery technology other than nickel-cadmium or lead?

(1) OJ L 269, 21.10.2000, p. 34.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(6 June 2002)

Directive 2000/53/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 18 September 2000 on end-of life vehicles provides that materials and components of vehicles put on the market after 1 July 2003 do not contain lead, mercury, cadmium or hexavalent chromium, unless an exemption is provided for in Annex II of the Directive. The decision to prohibit cadmium in batteries for electric vehicles was taken by the Parliament and the Council at the time of adoption of the Directive.

The Commission revises Annex II on a regular basis in the light of technical and scientific progress. In the course of the revision, the Commission analyses, inter alia, for which applications the use of heavy metals is or has become avoidable and if not, what maximum concentration values should be tolerated.

Recently, the Commission prepared a new proposal for a revision of Annex II in light of an elaborate scientific and technical assessment. This assessment included a recent technical study on heavy metals in vehicles carried out by an independent consultant, as well as investigations carried out directly by the Commission. The Commission also benefited from several meetings with the economic operators concerned, as well as discussions with the Member State experts within the Technical Adaptation Committee referred to by Article 11 of the Directive. The study of the independent consultant is available on the below web site: http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/waste/heavy_metals.pdf.

Cadmium in batteries in electrical vehicles is one of the applications, which has been reviewed by the Commission as a matter of priority. A large part of the electrical vehicles in Europe is equipped with cadmium batteries. The assessment carried out by the Commission showed that practicable alternatives to cadmium batteries such as Pb-acid (lead acid), NiMh (nickel-metal-hydride) and Li-ion (lithium-ion) batteries are already available or will become available on the market in the near future.

The Commission has extensively discussed the issue of the availability of electrical vehicles after a cadmium substitution with the industry, as well as national experts in this field. It followed from those consultations that the availability of electrical vehicles will be maintained in the absence of cadmium in batteries for electrical vehicles. Already at this moment, several car manufacturers rely on NiMH batteries for series production of electrical vehicles. For example, Toyota markets Toyota RAV4 100 % electrical vehicles in Europe, which are powered by NiMH batteries.

In light of the above, the Commission reached agreement on the substitution of cadmium batteries in electrical vehicles by 31 December 2005. The press release of 6 March 2002(1) only concerns this political agreement and does therefore not deal with the revision of other applications of Annex II.

In order to guarantee the availability of electrical vehicles on the market, the Commission will closely monitor the substitution process of cadmium in batteries in electrical vehicles. This substitution process is already taking place and is expected to be further encouraged after the entry into force of the revised Annex II. At the end of 2004, the Commission will publish the findings of its analysis on this substitution process. If those findings prove that the availability of electrical vehicles could be jeopardised, the Commission may propose to extend the exemption period for cadmium in batteries in electrical vehicles.

Lead in batteries is another application which has been reviewed by the Commission as a matter of priority. Most automotive vehicles with a combustion engine, which account for a large percentage of all vehicles registered in Europe, operate on the basis of lead-acid starter batteries.

The assessment carried out by the Commission showed that, contrary to cadmium in batteries for electrical vehicles, there are no practicable alternatives for lead-acid batteries available on the market and that no substitutes are expected to be available in the foreseeable future. Therefore, the Commission has proposed to maintain the exemption for the application lead in batteries in Annex II, without an expiry date.

(1) IP/02/366.