At the beginning of the event, antitrust law was once again on the agenda. In addition to keynote speeches focussing on recycling strategies and recycling, the status quo of the polymer materials used in the automotive sector was discussed in three parallel workshops. Which materials are dominant, in which components are they used and what quality and performance requirements are placed on the materials/components?
Each group then presented their initial results. But that's not all: ‘caretakers’ were defined for each of the new working groups, who will work with the group on individual issues until the next expert meeting in spring 2025.
The assessment of the ELV Directive with regard to statements on fillers such as glass fibres and talc remains open. For the legislator, fillers are not part of recycling, a statement that conflicts with the interpretation of most recycling norms and standards. They do consider fillers to be part of the recyclate.
Background
In July 2023, the EU Commission proposed a new directive for end-of-life vehicles, which would merge and replace the previous End-of-Life Vehicles Directive (Directive 2000/53/EC) and the Directive 2005/64/EC on the type-approval of motor vehicles. It sets out requirements for the reusability and recyclability of vehicles in line with the EU Green Deal and the Circular Economy Action Plan:
- Design optimization of vehicles to better remove materials, parts and components for reuse and recycling.
- Specification for the dismantlability of certain components such as e-motors or dashboards.
- Target: At least 25 % of the plastic used in a vehicle should come from recycling (25 % of which should come from recycled end-of-life vehicles).
- Higher-quality raw materials such as those on the list of Critical Raw Materials (CRM), as well as plastics, steel and aluminium, are to be recovered.
- Car manufacturers are to be made responsible for their end-of-life vehicles.
- The export of used vehicles that are not roadworthy is to be banned.
- The new directive covers more vehicles and gradually expands the EU regulations to include new categories such as motorcycles, trucks and buses.
