Batteries

Germany Bundestag: Inquiry on Lithium-Ion Battery Fire Risks in Household Waste

Members of the AfD parliamentary group in the German Bundestag have submitted a May 2026 small inquiry on fire risks from improperly discarded lithium-ion batteries in household waste and the resulting burdens on municipal waste operators. The questions signal potential pressure to tighten Germany’s Battery Act and Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act and to improve data collection, risk mitigation and possible federal support for local waste and emergency services.

25 May 2026, 18:22dserver.bundestag.deGermany

Japan CAA Reports Fires in Recalled Audio-Technica Earbuds and Panasonic Dehumidifier-Dryers

On 22 May 2026 Japan’s Consumer Affairs Agency reported 18 serious consumer product accidents, highlighting fires in recalled Audio-Technica wireless earbuds and Panasonic dehumidifier-dryers. The notice underscores ongoing fire risks from lithium-ion powered and heating appliances even after recalls begin, signalling the need for manufacturers and retailers to improve recall completion and battery safety monitoring in Japan.

25 May 2026, 15:38caa.go.jpJapan

Spain Adopts Order ITU/498/2026 Amending SEPIDES PRTR Aid Schemes

Spain has adopted Order ITU/498/2026 amending the bases of five SEPIDES-managed industrial decarbonisation and electric‑vehicle battery aid schemes under the PRTR, capping SEPIDES’ recoverable indirect costs and tightening classification and reporting duties from May 2026. This change modestly reduces the share of each PRTR investment that can fund project‑external overheads while increasing scrutiny of project categorisation and execution, so beneficiaries and applicants should review updated bases, cost structures and documentation requirements before future calls.

25 May 2026, 15:38boe.esSpain

EU EESC Issues Opinion on Sodium Battery Manufacturing and Strategic Autonomy

The EU’s Economic and Social Committee has issued a non-binding opinion urging accelerated development of a sodium battery manufacturing ecosystem to boost strategic autonomy, energy system resilience and alignment with the Green and Blue Deals. This signals likely future EU support and expectations for PFAS-free, low-impact, circular sodium battery value chains, with implications for battery makers, materials suppliers and energy infrastructure planners across Europe.

25 May 2026, 15:34eur-lex.europa.euEuropean Union

Chile Drafts Safety Certification Protocol for Portable Power Stations (PE Nº8/12:2026)

Chile has notified a draft SEC safety certification protocol for portable power stations up to 6 kW, defining mandatory testing, sampling and labelling requirements based on IEC 62368-1, with comments due by 17 July 2026. Manufacturers and importers of battery-based portable generators targeting the Chilean market should plan for SEC certification, adjust designs and documentation to meet the new protocol, and factor in testing timelines before the rules become mandatory.

24 May 2026, 21:27members.wto.orgChile

European Commission Proposes Simplifying Amendments To EU Batteries And Industrial Emissions Portal Regulations (COM(2025) 981)

COM(2025) 981 is a Commission proposal that would make targeted amendments to the EU Batteries Regulation and the Industrial Emissions Portal Regulation to clarify producer and SVHC labelling obligations for batteries and ease reporting requirements for livestock and aquaculture operators. If adopted, it would tighten extended producer responsibility coverage, shift some battery design and labelling expectations, and reduce administrative costs for farms and aquaculture while maintaining environmental information flows for EU-level monitoring.

24 May 2026, 21:09eur-lex.europa.euEuropean Union

Environment Agency Issues Final Appropriate Measures Guidance For Waste Battery Permitted Facilities In England

On 21 May 2026 the Environment Agency published final appropriate measures guidance for environmental permits covering facilities that treat or transfer separate collections of waste batteries in England. New and existing waste-battery operators must now align design, management, storage, treatment and emissions controls with these standards, planning rapid low-cost upgrades and staged capital improvements that will shape permitting expectations and investment decisions over the next several years.

23 May 2026, 09:08gov.ukUnited Kingdom

Japan CAA Publishes Serious Accident Summary Under Consumer Safety Act (21 May 2026)

Japan’s Consumer Affairs Agency has issued its 21 May 2026 summary of 111 notified consumer accidents under the Consumer Safety Act, including 48 serious cases, highlighting frequent fires in vehicles, lithium-battery devices and household appliances alongside incidents in care and childcare services. While the notice does not create new legal duties, it is a timely signal for manufacturers, importers and service providers selling into Japan to reassess product fire safety, lithium-battery risk controls and safety management in care and transport services.

23 May 2026, 08:57caa.go.jpJapan

California CalRecycle Reschedules Public Workshop on Covered Battery-Embedded Waste Recycling Fee

California’s CalRecycle has rescheduled its hybrid public workshop on the covered battery-embedded waste recycling fee to 17 June 2026, with participation possible in person, by Zoom, or via webcast. The workshop will shape the design and level of a new recycling fee for battery-embedded electronics from 2027, so manufacturers, importers, and retailers selling into California should follow the process and use the comment period to manage future cost and compliance impacts.

22 May 2026, 18:50www2.calrecycle.ca.govUnited States

Netherlands ILT Publishes 2025 Annual Report Highlighting Steel Slag, Unsafe E-Commerce Products and Environmental Crime

In May 2026 the Dutch Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate published its 2025 annual report, highlighting steel slag pollution, unsafe e-commerce products containing asbestos and lead, and major environmental crime cases involving industrial polluters and illegal plastic waste exports. The report signals ILT’s enforcement priorities and a shift toward signalling regulatory gaps, suggesting heightened scrutiny and potential future tightening of rules for hazardous waste, online product safety and high-impact industrial operators.

22 May 2026, 12:13ilent.nlNetherlands

Castilla y León Corrects Environmental Authorisation for LFP Battery Recycling Plant in Boecillo

In May 2026, Castilla y León’s environment ministry corrected the environmental authorisation for Ilunion Batteries’ LFP battery recycling plant in Boecillo, clarifying its legal classification, annual treatment capacity, auxiliary chemicals and emission sources. The updated permit conditions define the scale and environmental controls of this Spanish LFP recycling facility more precisely, which is important for internal permit compliance, monitoring obligations and capacity planning for battery-waste operations.

22 May 2026, 12:12bocyl.jcyl.esSpain

South Korea To Implement Battery Recycled-Material Certification Scheme From May 2027

South Korea is preparing a new certification scheme for regenerated battery materials and updated black-mass recycling criteria, ahead of the Act on the Management and Promotion of Used Batteries taking effect in May 2027. Battery recyclers and downstream users should plan for tighter quality, documentation, and sourcing controls as 2026 pilots and enforcement-rule changes under the Waste Management Act shape detailed future compliance obligations.

22 May 2026, 10:22mcee.go.krSouth Korea

Chile (Valparaíso) Reports Advanced Implementation of REP Recycling Law and Highlights New Decree for Batteries and EEE

Chile’s environmental authorities in Valparaíso report advanced implementation of the national extended producer responsibility recycling law, with growing municipal coverage for packaging, selective household collection, and inclusive recycling schemes. The communication also highlights the new national decree for batteries and electrical and electronic equipment, signalling accelerating REP obligations for producers and municipalities as Chile expands its circular economy and waste management framework.

21 May 2026, 06:36mma.gob.clChile

Environment Agency Confirms CPI-Linked Increases to Waste (Miscellaneous) Charging Scheme From April 2027

The Environment Agency has updated its Waste (miscellaneous) charging scheme to state that all listed charges will rise on 1 April 2027 and then increase automatically each 1 April in line with the Consumer Prices Index. This locks in predictable but ongoing fee escalations for waste, WEEE, batteries and related activities in England, so operators should factor higher regulatory charges into long-term budgets and commercial planning.

20 May 2026, 19:56gov.ukUnited Kingdom

EU Parliament ITRE Draft Report – Amendments 22–258 to Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 (Critical Raw Materials Act)

In April 2026, the European Parliament’s ITRE committee tabled 237 amendments to the Commission’s proposal to amend Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 on critical raw materials, tightening strategic-project rules, corporate supply-chain risk assessments, and labelling and recycled-content requirements for permanent magnets. If agreed, these changes would harden expectations on large manufacturers to map and diversify critical raw-material supply chains, increase circular use of rare earths and other CRM inputs, and could lead to export controls and new EU-level financing and governance tools that materially reshape CRM-dependent value chains.

20 May 2026, 19:20europarl.europa.euEuropean Union

California Bill AB 2549 – Electronic Waste Recycling Manufacturer Notices and Retailer Duties

California’s AB 2549 is advancing in the Assembly and would tighten manufacturer notice, reporting, and CalRecycle infrastructure requirements for battery-embedded electronic products under the Electronic Waste Recycling Act of 2003, including standardised notices, a UPC‑based public database, and defined retailer knowledge thresholds by early 2027. For electronics manufacturers, marketplace facilitators, and retailers selling into California, this would mean new product‑level data and notice workflows, closer alignment of billing systems to 60‑day compliance windows, and reliance on the CalRecycle database to manage fee obligations once the bill is enacted.

20 May 2026, 18:00leginfo.legislature.ca.govUnited States

European Parliament IMCO Meeting To Consider EPR Authorised Representative Suspension – 2 June 2026

The European Parliament’s Internal Market Committee will on 2 June 2026 debate a draft opinion on suspending certain authorised-representative obligations under EU extended producer responsibility rules for batteries and packaging, alongside an exchange of views with Amazon over the systemic sale of unsafe and illegal products. This marks a significant procedural step for an EU legislative proposal that could reshape producer compliance and marketplace oversight, with amendments to Parliament’s position due by 4 June 2026.

20 May 2026, 17:55europarl.europa.euEuropean Union

Castilla y León Corrects Environmental Authorisation for Ilunion Batteries LFP Recycling Plant in Boecillo

Castilla y León has corrected the integrated environmental authorisation for Ilunion Batteries’ LFP recycling plant in Boecillo, clarifying the hazardous-waste activity classification, treatment capacity, auxiliary reagents and stack emissions. These changes confirm the facility’s scale in the >10 t/day category and may influence permitting, reporting, and chemical handling requirements for the plant’s design and operation.

20 May 2026, 10:03bocyl.jcyl.esSpain

Germany Publishes Error List 1 to RID Amendments (BGBl. II 2026 Nr. 103)

Germany has issued an official error list correcting NHM commodity codes and several provisions in the RID dangerous goods rail rules following the latest RID amendment. Rail freight operators and chemical shippers should update RID-based classifications, coding and documentation to align with these corrections and avoid mis-declaration and compliance disputes.

20 May 2026, 07:08recht.bund.deGermany

Thailand DIW and Police Raid Factory Over Illegal Hazardous Waste After Lithium Battery Explosion

Thailand’s Department of Industrial Works and environmental-crime police have raided a plastics factory in Samut Sakhon following a lithium-battery truck explosion, uncovering more than 4,000 cubic metres of illegally stored e-waste and solar-panel waste and enforcing the Thai Factory Act and Hazardous Substances Act. This enforcement shows regulators are closely tracing hazardous-waste flows linked to battery incidents and will pursue operators whose licensing, waste handling, and storage practices fall short, raising compliance and reputational risk for waste handlers, recyclers, and manufacturers in Thailand.

20 May 2026, 07:06diw.go.thThailand