The government announced the ‘Legislation, System, and Infrastructure Development Plan for Promoting the Used Battery Industry’ at the Economic Ministers Meeting on Wednesday, July 10 at 08:00. As a follow-up to last year’s ‘Enhancement Plan for Secondary Battery Industry Competitiveness (December 2023),’ this measure aims to foster the used battery industry and focuses on upgrading the used battery management system to proactively respond to global trade regulations.

First, it will promote legislation on the ‘Bill for Promoting the Used Battery Industry and Ensuring Supply Chain Stability (tentative name, “Integrated Bill”),’ supporting comprehensive and systematic policy implementation. The Integrated Bill is expected to outline major regulations such as battery life cycle management systems, recycled material certification system, and performance evaluation before removal of electric vehicle batteries. In addition, a policy committee will be established to deliberate and coordinate major issues requiring collaboration among relevant ministries. Detailed operational procedures will be specified through amendments to individual laws under the jurisdiction of related ministries, including the Act on the Promotion of the Conversion into Environment-friendly Industrial Structure, Act on Resource Circulation of Electrical and Electronic Equipment and Vehicles, and Motor Vehicle Management Act, as well as joint guidelines.

The “Battery Life Cycle Management System” manages and shares life cycle information from battery manufacturing through electric vehicle operation, disposal, and recycling utilization. It plays a crucial role in battery resource circulation. This system is expected not only to facilitate policy-making for battery supply chain management, transaction activation, and safety management but also to contribute to transparent transaction information. The government aims to establish an integrated portal by 2027 to apply for and share battery life cycle information, ensuring smooth progress in determining system registration information, sharing scope, and individual system construction.

The ‘Recycled Material Certification System’ is a system to verify how much valuable metals such as lithium, nickel, and cobalt extracted from used batteries are used in the production of new batteries, in order to proactively respond to global trade regulations such as the European Union (EU)’s mandatory use of recycled battery materials (from 2031). By introducing the ‘Korean Recycled Material Certification System,’ where the Ministry of Environment certifies valuable metals produced by recycling companies as recycled materials (production certification) and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy verifies the usage ratio of recycled materials in new batteries (usage certification), the government aims to alleviate the certification burden that may arise for Korean export companies in the future.

In addition, the ‘Performance Evaluation Before Removal of Electric Vehicle Batteries’ (“Performance Evaluation”) will be introduced to classify the grade of used batteries without removing them when their use in electric vehicles has ended. This aims to support the industrial utilization of used batteries that can be remanufactured or reused to the maximum extent. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport plans to establish specific grade classification standards based on research and development results for the dissemination of performance evaluation technology and equipment.

Meanwhile, to alleviate consumer concerns due to recent fires, a distribution system will be established to support the safety, fairness, and transparency of the used battery industry. A legal framework will be created for a safety management system that includes the introduction of pre-distribution and post-distribution safety inspections for used batteries, and detailed transportation and storage standards will be established to ensure safety during the trading and distribution process of used batteries. In addition, while maintaining the principle of free trade in the private sector, a ‘Fair Trade Guideline’ will be established to prevent unfair practices, and a business registration system will be introduced to ensure the expertise and accountability of related businesses.

For further information, please contact the Public Relations Division. 

Contact person: Gina Lee, foreign media spokesperson

Phone: +82-44-201-6055

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