Battery - Europe
Compliance Services
Where would you like to market your products?
A CE mark signifies that the product conforms to health, safety, and environmental protection requirements by EU and is only required for products covered in the CE marking directives.
​
Some common directives that battery products may need to conform to are:​
-
Batteries Directive
-
Low Voltage Directive
-
Ecodesign Directive
-
Restriction on Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive
Batteries Directive
Primary objective of the directive is to minimize the negative impact of batteries and waste batteries on the environment, while ensuring the smooth functioning of the internal market.
​
-
To cut the amount of hazardous substances (in particular mercury, cadmium and lead) entering the environment, the directive laid down rules to:
-
reduce the use of such substances in batteries. In particular, it prohibited the marketing of certain batteries with a mercury or cadmium content above a fixed threshold (0.0005 % by weight for mercury; and 0.002 % by weight for cadmium).
-
ensure the proper management of waste batteries and also set targets for collection rates of disposed batteries and efficiencies of the recycling processes.​
-
​
-
The directive also set out requirements for the labelling of batteries and their removability from equipment, and regarding information for end-users.
​
-
*This directive is not a CE marking directive.
Low Voltage Directive (LVD)
-
The directive covers all electrical equipment and components designed for use with a voltage rating of between 50 and 1000 V for alternating current and between 75 and 1500 V for direct current.
​
-
It provides the essential (safety) requirements that electrical equipment and components covered by it must comply with.
​
-
The LVD is a self-assessed directive and as such, does not require the involvement of a Notified Body.
​
-
*For household appliances, lighting equipment and welding equipment the requirements for human exposure to EMF are covered under LVD.
Ecodesign Directive
-
Establishes a framework under which manufacturers of energy-using products are obliged to reduce the energy consumption and other negative environmental impacts occurring throughout the product life cycle.
​
-
*Complemented by the Energy Labelling Directive (not a CE marking directive).
Restriction on Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive
-
Aims to prevent the risks posed to human health and the environment related to the management of electronic and electrical waste.
​
-
It does this by restricting the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) that can be substituted by safer alternatives.
​
-
The RoHS Directive currently restricts the use of ten substances: lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP).
​
-
The Directive also promotes the recyclability of EEE.
​
-
*In parallel, the WEEE directive (not a CE marking directive) promotes the collection and recycling of such equipment.