Volvo to issue world’s first EV battery passport ahead of EU rules
VOLVO Cars is launching the world’s first electric vehicle (EV) battery passport recording the origins of raw materials, components, recycled content and carbon footprint for its flagship EX90 sport utility vehicle (SUV), which is about to start production, the Swedish automaker told Reuters.
The passport was developed by Volvo, which is owned by China’s Geely, in partnership with UK startup Circulor, which uses blockchain technology to map supply chains for companies, and took over five years to develop.
Battery passports – showing the composition of batteries, including the origin of key materials, their carbon footprint and recycled content – will be mandatory for EVS sold in the European Union from February 2027.
Volvo’s head of global sustainability Vanessa Butani told Reuters that introducing the passport nearly three years before regulations kick in was aimed at being transparent with car buyers, as the automaker targets producing only fully-electric cars by 2030.
“It’s really important for us to be a pioneer and a leader,” Butani said.
The EX90 SUV with a battery passport is due to start production soon at Volvo’s plant in Charleston, South Carolina, and will be delivered to customers in Europe and North America from the second half of the year.
Volvo owners can access a simplified version of the passport using a QR code on the inside of the driver’s door.
Butani said the passport would be gradually rolled out to all of Volvo’s EVS. A more complete version of the passport will be passed to regulators.
It will also include up-to-date information on the EV battery’s state of health – vital for assessing used EV values – for 15 years and will Volvo cost around US$10 per car, Circulor chief executive officer Douglas Johnson-poensgen told Reuters.
Circulor’s system traces battery materials from the mine to individual cars, piggybacking on suppliers’ production systems to track materials throughout the supply chain and checking suppliers’ monthly energy bills – and how much of their energy comes from renewable sources in order to calculate a total carbon footprint.
If Volvo brings on board a supplier, Circulor will need to audit it to keep information current, Johnson-poensgen said.
The passport has also required changes in how Volvo traces parts through its manufacturing process to understand the origins of every part in every vehicle.