EU battery legislation two matters delayed, Chinese lithium battery companies exporting to Europe get buffer

Due to adjustments in the global raw materials supply chain and a shortage of third-party investigative agencies, the EU has proposed to postpone the implementation of the battery supply chain due diligence investigation scheduled for this August by two years. The originally planned submission of carbon footprint reports by companies in February of this year has also been postponed due to the lack of detailed regulations, providing Chinese lithium battery companies with a buffer of time to export to Europe. The postponement of these two matters is good news for Chinese lithium battery exports to the EU. The EU is the largest export market for Chinese lithium batteries, with data from the Chinese General Administration of Customs showing that in the first four months of 2025, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Spain, and Hungary together accounted for nearly a third of China's lithium battery exports.