The big news this year is that the European Union (EU) will enforce the use of USB-C on all electronic devices sold in member states by December 2024. This is not limited to smartphones but all devices that require an electrical source. Next, the EU wants to enforce a law requiring all electronic devices to have batteries that can be replaced by the owner.
The interesting thing about this law is that it not only covers all electronic devices but also electric cars, electric scooters, and electric industrial equipment. Each battery needs to have a QR code stating where the resource is mined from to avoid it being taken from mines that use slave and child labor.
It does not end there, batteries must have a percentage of components taken from recycled sources. For example, 6% of nickel and 85% of lead must come from our own sources. After that, batteries for electric vehicles need to be 100% recyclable after the end of their life.
Manufacturers will be given a period of 3.5 years to find a solution to use owner-replaceable batteries on equipment manufactured by them.
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