Portable Batteries

As a producer of portable batteries, you are responsible for ensuring they are collected and recycled correctly. By joining Batterikretsen, you gain assistance with registration, reporting, and recycling through a nationwide collection system.

If your company places portable batteries on the Swedish market and is affiliated with Batterikretsen, you are part of our national collection system. You can refer your customers to around 6,000 collection points across the country – via recycling centres and battery collection boxes. Some stores and distributors also accept portable batteries.

Batteries are reported monthly or quarterly, stating quantity and total weight, divided by the battery’s main chemistry. This classification follows the authorities’ requirements and reflects the costs associated with different battery types.

Through “My Pages – El-Kretsen’s digital portal – you manage reporting, statistics, and environmental data. You also receive guidance if you are uncertain about how different batteries or electronic products should be reported.

Batterikretsen registers your company with the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency’s battery register and handles the annual reporting on your behalf.

Fees

In addition to registration and reporting, Batterikretsen’s mandate includes a range of services and obligations defined in the Battery Regulation. These include:

• Expanding and operating the collection system for free battery collection at affiliated collection points. This includes suitable containers and transport, with attention paid to the properties of different batteries, such as flammability or health risks.
• Developing a recycling process that, in accordance with the Battery Regulation, achieves new collection and recycling targets. This includes completely avoiding energy recovery and landfill.
• Ensuring Batterikretsen’s internal control for managing producers and collected batteries through continuous quality follow-ups.
• Maintaining financial security.
• Funding compositional analyses of household waste every five years.
• Creating informational materials on recycling, litter prevention, and battery use advice.
• Monitoring legislation for the five different battery categories and adapting operations to any regulatory changes.

Batterikretsen’s fees consist of three components:

1. Entry fee
2. Fixed annual fee
3. Environmental fee (SEK/kg)

All fees are listed in El-Kretsen’s price list, available on the website and in the declaration portal. Any price changes are announced at least two months in advance.

Batterikretsen, like El-Kretsen, operates on a non-profit basis – no profits are distributed to owners.

Definition of Portable Batteries

A portable battery is a sealed battery weighing no more than 5 kilograms, not specifically designed for industrial use, and not an electric vehicle battery, a light means of transport (LMT) battery, or a starter battery.

The most common portable batteries are those used in, for example, remote controls, flashlights, and toys. But batteries built into other products also count – for instance, batteries in computers, tools, or small batteries integrated into complex products such as cars and control equipment.