Circularity Vehicle Passport
The automotive industry at the forefront of circularity – a digital transformation
Digital product passports are a core element in the circular economy strategy of the European Union Green Deal.
In the upcoming years, we will see an increasing number of products to be accompanied with digital collections of their individual specifications and characteristics. With this, the EU aims to improve transparency for consumer decisions and all players along the value chain, to promote sustainable products and enable new circular business models.
The greater context – EU Green Deal & the automotive industry
On the path to fight climate change, circularity becomes increasingly prominent within the European Union and its member states. In fact, the European Green Deal declared circularity as one of the main pillars to drive sustainability. This implies that Europe’s major industries need to strive for increasing circular practices within their operations. The automotive industry is set to be one of the key areas for action, claiming the highest resource consumption within the EU as well as relying on an extensive value chain, impacting many other industries. Vehicle production is responsible for 19% of the steel consumption within the EU as well as for 10% of plastics used. Hence, legislators are evaluating measures to drive circular developments within the automotive industry in the context of the European Green Deal. (6)
Siemens Battery Passport
Our colleagues from Siemens are actively developing a Battery Passport ecosystem that goes beyond regulations. It empowers stakeholders to access and manage battery value chain data, using customizable add-on applications for analytics, sustainability, and more. This ecosystem is designed for universal accessibility and seamless integration with existing platforms, ensuring a user-friendly experience along the value chain. Join us in transforming the battery industry.
Several digital product passport approaches are expected to be relevant for the automotive industry. The nearest and most prominent example is the Battery Passport, based on the renewed EU Battery Regulation. It affects all electric vehicles with a high-voltage battery of 2 kWh capacity, sold in the European Union from 2027 onwards.
With a similar timeframe, the Environmental Vehicle Passport is expected, which as measure of the new EU Regulation on Type-Approval of Motor Vehicles (known as Euro 7), will redefine the scope of emission and approval data that carmakers must provide to customers.
Even more important is the Circularity Vehicle Passport, expected for 2032.
The proposal for a regulation on automotive circularity requirements
The Circular Vehicle Passport represents a groundbreaking approach to sustainability, revolutionizing the way we perceive and manage the lifecycle of vehicles. As the automotive industry embraces circular economy principles, the Circularity Vehicle Passport emerges as a pivotal document, enabling the efficient reuse, recycling, and repurposing of vehicles, thereby reducing waste, and minimizing environmental impact. (5)
The proposal by the European Union regarding the regulation on management of end-of-life vehicles, which is currently under evaluation, aims on driving circularity within the automotive industry. It focuses on six key action fields (4):
Design Circular
Improve the rules on how cars must be designed to be easily dismantled for later remanufacturing or material recycling.
Used recycled content
25% of the plastic used to build a new vehicle should be secondary material.
Collect more and smarter
Reduce the number of end-of-life vehicles gone missing, enforce rules for monitoring and increase transparency.
Treat better
Recover more and better-quality raw materials by improving recycling processes and promoting reuse strategies.
Make producers responsible
Stricter governance, improved cooperation, increased circularity.
Cover more vehicles
Gradually extend the scope of the rules, e.g. to commercial vehicles and road bikes (1).
By 2035, the regulation should lead to:
The Circularity Vehicle Passport as the digital enabler
To enforce the regulation and to reach the targets, a Circularity Vehicle Passport is stated as the digital enabler. It serves as a comprehensive, digital record that provides detailed information about a product's design, manufacturing, materials, and environmental impact, facilitating transparency, traceability, and sustainable practices throughout its lifecycle. Following more prominent solutions such as the Battery Passport or the Circularity Vehicle Passport may include:
- Material data, such as the composition of the vehicle, the weight of the materials used and their origin.
- Dismantling information, such as disassembly instructions, and recycling recommendations. (3)
Our take on the Circularity Vehicle Passport
The current regulation is still in its infancy and has not passed the proposal stage yet. Until now, there has been no official timeline set for the implementation of the regulation, neither have detailed information on the contents of the Circularity Vehicle Passport been defined. However, at Siemens Advanta Consulting, we believe that this or similar regulations will certainly become reality in the near future, following the landmarks of the European Green Deal. For the Circularity Vehicle Pass, we expect the corresponding regulation to enter into force in the beginning of the next decade. Therefore, we recommend automotive OEMs to engage in thought leadership and drive the development of an infrastructure which can enable digital product passports. Pioneers will further have the chance to push own standards in the market and actively collaborate on the development of industry standards. We also believe that those who go ahead now, can leverage considerable synergies from existing or planned digital product passports, such as the Battery Passport. Ultimately, just like the latter mentioned, the Circularity Vehicle Passport may also enable internal use cases for manufacturers to save costs, improve quality, or facilitate new business models and customer features.
With deep expertise in supporting external clients in the setup of already existing product passports, Siemens Advanta Consulting is your expert in the fast paced and constantly changing world of digital product passports. We are happy to guide you on your way towards a more sustainable future by using such digital tools, from the initial exploration of a fitting solution for you until the integration of the solution. We look forward to helping you close the loop and stepping into a bright circular future.
Our industry leader
- European Commission - Press release; Circular economy: improving design and end-of-life management of cars for more resource-efficient automotive sector; Brussels, 13 July 2023
- End-of-life vehicles Regulation (europa.eu)
- Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on circularity requirements for vehicle design and on management of end-of-life vehicles, amending Regulations (EU) 2018/858 and 2019/1020 and repealing Directives 2000/53/EC and 2005/64/EC; (Text with EEA relevance) {SEC(2023) 292 final} - {SWD(2023) 255 final} - {SWD(2023) 256 final} - {SWD(2023) 257 final}; Brussels, 13.07.2023
- COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT; Subsidiarity Grid; Accompanying the document
Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on circularity requirements for vehicle design and on management of end-of-life vehicles, amending Regulations (EU) 2018/858 and 2019/1020, repealing Directives 2000/53/EC and 2005/64/EC; {COM(2023) 451 final} - {SEC(2023) 292 final} - {SWD(2023) 256 final} - {SWD(2023) 257 final}; Brussels, 13.07.2023 - COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT; IMPACT ASSESSMENT REPORT; Accompanying the document Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on circularity requirements for vehicle design and on management of end-of-life vehicles, amending Regulations (EU) 2018/858 and 2019/1020 and repealing Directives 2000/53/EC and 2005/64/EC; {COM(2023) 451 final} - {SEC(2023) 292 final} - {SWD(2023) 255 final} - {SWD(2023) 257 final}; Brussels, 13.07.2023
- COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT; IMPACT ASSESSMENT REPORT; ANNEXES 10 TO 15 to the IMPACT ASSESSMENT REPORT; Accompanying the document; Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on circularity requirements for vehicle design and on management of end-of-life vehicles, amending Regulations (EU) 2018/858 and 2019/1020 and repealing Directives 2000/53/EC and 2005/64/EC; {COM(2023) 451 final} - {SEC(2023) 292 final} - {SWD(2023) 255 final} - {SWD(2023) 257 final}; Brussels, 13.07.2023