What is the battery passport, soon to be mandatory for electric cars ?

© Unsplash/Obi @Pixel8propix

As new electric cars multiply on the roads, a second-hand market is starting to form. A market that represents a financially very interesting alternative for motorists tempted to take the plunge, if possible by making real savings.

The problem is that this market, precisely, still suffers from frictions that put off many buyers. The cause is the lack of standardized information, particularly on the battery. Not all manufacturers are in the same boat, and neither are all vehicle models.

Tesla, among others, offers its own used cars in dealerships. These come with a battery warranty, generally expressed in years and number of kilometers. If the performance deviates from the manufacturer's forecasts, then the element is changed at the latter's expense – in any case during the warranty period.

Beyond the manufacturer's circuits, there is no obligation to provide standardized information to make informed comparisons. This is where the Battery Passport comes in.

The Battery Passport is an online document that will soon be mandatory for all batteries sold or integrated into an electric vehicle in France, as in the rest of the European Union. Presented in the form of a QR Code, it is attached to the element for its entire lifespan.

In concrete terms, this digital document is both an information sheet and a logbook. On the one hand, it contains all the data such as the origin and ethical side of sourcing materials, or everything related to recycling, among other things. But also, crucially for consumers, the entire history of this battery.

The consortium that manages this European document is considering real-time monitoring of this history. Which must mention theperformance status, capacity, and any repairs it may have undergone.

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From 2027, the QR Code of the battery passport will come with all new vehicles sold in the European Union. It is an obligation. And rather welcome, since not only will this document be the same for all manufacturers, but as a bonus it will be standardized so that you will have access to the same data, wherever you buy your vehicle or your battery in the Union.

But for the moment, only one brand offers this information. On a single model: the Volvo EX90. In addition, the standardization effort is still progressing. Several consortia are still fighting to define the list of data that will be behind this QR Code, or the terms of its online publication. The Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative, for example, proposes to rely on Blockchain technology, the same as that of crypto.

Allowing the Battery Passport to be made more secure, making it de facto tamper-proof and removing any risk that this data will disappear, thanks to decentralization. Another consortium, Catena-X, establishes the QR Code standards for Volkswagen and Siemens. Finally, the Global Battery Alliance is pushing for the establishment of this type of standardization outside the borders of the European Union.

A priori, Audi and Tesla should quickly follow Volvo in its approach, before the rest of the manufacturers who will necessarily have to get started before the deadline.

The battery is the most expensive element in an electric car, even if it should be noted that their price is falling year after year (and fortunately). The element costs around €8,100 for a Renault Zoe (52 kWh), around €12,000 for a Tesla Model 3 (54 kWh) or €25,000 for an Audi e-tron (95 kWh).

Owners of used vehicles also have the option of replacing their battery with a used battery. An emerging market, which involves equipping themselves with cells with reduced performance &#8211 with however the key between 30% and 70% savings on the normal price.

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