. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
G/TBT/N/EU/74 
1 November 2012  
 (12-5987) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   English 
  
 
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6 
 
1. Notifying Member:  EUROPEAN UNION  
If applicable, name of local governme nt involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):     
2. Agency responsible:  European Commission 
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above :   
European Commission 
EU-TBT Enquiry Point Fax:  +(32) 2 299 80 43 E-mail:  mailto:eu-tbt@ec.europa.eu  
Website: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/tbt/  
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [X], 5.7.1 [   ], other:   
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading. 
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Batteries and 
accumulators. 
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Proposal for a Directive 
of the European Parliament and of the C ouncil amending Directive 2006/66/EC on batteries 
and accumulators and waste batteries and accumu lators as regards the placing on the market 
of portable batteries and accumulators containi ng cadmium intended for use in cordless power 
tools (COM(2012) 136 final/2) (6 pages, in English, French and Spanish).      
6. Description of content:  Directive 2006/66/EC on batterie s and accumulators and waste 
batteries and accumulators ("Batteries Direc tive") prohibits the placing on the market of 
batteries and accumulators c ontaining mercury and cadmium. Th is ban on using cadmium in 
batteries and accumulators appl ies to 'portable batteries a nd accumulators, including those 
incorporated in appliances, that contain more  than 0.002% of cadmiu m by weight' (Article 
4(1)(b) of the Batteries Directive). The Batt eries Directive exemps portable baterries and 
accumulators intended for use in cordless power tools from this ban.   
Under this proposal the exemption for the use of cadmium in por table batteries and 
accumulators intended for use in cordless power  tools will expire on 1 January 2016.  As from 
this date, the use of cadmium in portable baterries and accu mulators intended for use in 
cordless power tools will fa ll under Article 4(1)(b) of th e Batteries Directive.    G/TBT/N/EU/74 
Page 2  
 
  7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:  
Gradual diminution of the amount of cad mium released into the environment.  
8. Relevant documents:   Directive 2006/66/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council 
of 6 September 2006 on batteries and accumulators and waste ba tteries and accumulators and 
repealing Directive 91/157/EEC (OJ L 266, 26.9.2006, p. 1-14)  
"http://eur-
lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ /LexUriServ.do?uri=CON SLEG:2006L0066:20081205:EN:PDF " 
9. Proposed date of adoption:   
Proposed date of entry into force:    First semester of 2013 
20 days from publication in the Official Journal of the EU (about a month after adoption 
approx.) EU Member Stat es shall bring into 
force laws to comply with Article 1(1) of the proposed directive by 18 m onths after entry into 
force at the latest. 
10. Final date for comments:  90 days from date of notification. 
11. Text available from:  National enquiry point [  ], or address, telephone and fax numbers, 
e-mail and web-site addresses, if available of the other body:    
European Commission 
EU-TBT Enquiry Point 
Fax:  + (32) 2 299 80 43 
E-mail:  mailto:eu-tbt@ec.europa.eu  
The text is available on the EU-TBT Website:  http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/tbt/    
and at: 
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/L exUriServ.do?uri=CO M:2012:0136:REV1:EN:HTML  
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/L exUriServ.do?uri=CO M:2012:0136:REV1:FR:HTML  
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/L exUriServ.do?uri=CO M:2012:0136:REV1:ES:HTML  
http://members.wto.org/crnatt achments/2012/tbt/EEC/12_4291_00_e.pdf