The Lead Battery 360° Alliance, a global organization formed by the International Lead Association (ILA), Battery Council International (BCI), the Association of European Automotive and Industrial Battery Manufacturers (EUROBAT), and the Association of Battery Recyclers (ABR), is pleased to announce the launch of a public consultation on its newly developed Code.

    Lead Battery 360° seeks to unlock the power of lead batteries for a sustainable future, and champions best practices in lead mining, lead production, lead battery manufacturing and recycling, by encouraging responsible practices along the entire battery value chain through supply chain management and product stewardship.

    The Lead Battery 360° Assurance Program

    Lead Battery 360° aims to become the leading independent assurance framework promoting responsible practices across the lead battery value chain. This framework will rely on third-party assurance to certify various actors in the lead supply chain, including battery manufacturers, primary metal producers, and battery recyclers. Sites seeking certification must undergo an independent assessment every three years to demonstrate their compliance with the 7 Guiding Principles (GPs) and respective Performance Expectations (PEs) outlined in the Lead Battery 360° Code. Achieving “Meets” conformance will be required for specific “critical” PEs. Sites can however still be awarded certification if they only achieve “Partially Meets” status on “non-critical” PEs, granted that they provide a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP). Critical and non-critical PEs will be outlined in the Assurance Manual once the final Code and assurance framework is launched.

    Key Objectives of the Public Consultation

    • To gather feedback from a diverse range of stakeholders, including industry participants, non-governmental organisations, academia, and the public, on the proposed Code.
    • To ensure the Code aligns with international best practices and addresses the evolving needs and expectations of the lead battery value chain stakeholders.
    • To strengthen the lead battery industry’s commitment to responsible sourcing and sustainable recycling practices.

    Invitation to Participate

    The Code will only be finalised after reviewing and integrating feedback from the public consultation. Lead Battery 360° invites all interested stakeholders to participate in this process. Stakeholder input will be crucial in refining the Code to ensure it is robust, comprehensive, and aligned with global sustainability goals.

    The consultation period will run from 8th October to 6th December 2024. During this time, you may access the Code and feedback form.

    All contributions will be carefully reviewed and a summary of the consultation findings, along with the final version of the Code, will be published on the Lead Battery 360° website by the end of 2024.

    Thank you for your commitment to sustainability and responsible business practices. We look forward to your valuable input.