EU: Countdown to applying for the Belt and Road Initiative

brief

On June 28, 2024, the European Ecodesign Regulation (2024/1781/EU) (“Ecodesign regulationsThe Regulation will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union and will enter into force on 18 July 2024. The Regulation implies fundamental changes in the manufacturing methods of various products and directly affects the supply chains of all companies intending to introduce products into the EU. Its underlying aim is to make products more sustainable by introducing a series of requirements and bans that will be adapted to each product group through delegated acts of the European Commission. The Regulation is a framework legislation, which means that the specific product rules will be decided over time step by step, product by product or horizontally based on product groups with similar characteristics.

Until now, the range of ecodesign requirements set out in the Ecodesign Regulation had only been laid down in Directive 2009/125/CE for energy-related products. However, the Ecodesign Regulation replaces the above Directive and extends this approach to the widest possible range of products.

Generally speaking, ecodesign regulations establish a set of ecodesign requirements, which may include performance requirements, information requirements, or both.

In this sense, the performance requirements set out in the Ecodesign Regulation concern all aspects of the product, namely its durability, reliability, repairability, upgradability, reusability and recyclability, the presence of substances of concern, resource and energy efficiency, the expected generation of waste and its impact on the environment, including its carbon footprint and environmental footprint. These requirements will be determined and specified for each product group through delegated acts adopted by the European Commission.

On the other hand, information requirements are intended to change consumer behavior. One of the most important innovations introduced by this Ecodesign Regulation is Digital Product Passportwhich will summarize the main characteristics of the products, making such information accessible to economic operators and consumers. The passport will be publicly available online, as it will be registered in a digital register that will be available until July 19, 2026.

In addition, the regulation also provides that Limit the destruction of unsold productsIn this regard, the following measures are foreseen:

1. Large companies will have to report annually the unsold consumer products discarded through their websites by July 19, 2025, and medium-sized companies will have to report starting July 19, 2030.
2. The Ecodesign Regulation prohibits the destruction of unsold consumer goods listed in Annex VII to the Ecodesign Regulation, which are certain clothing, clothing accessories and footwear, from July 19, 2026 for large companies and from July 19, 2030 for medium-sized companies.

The European Commission will give priority to the adoption of the above-mentioned delegated acts, which will apply to products such as steel, aluminum, textiles, furniture, tires, detergents, paints, chemicals, lubricants, energy-related products and electronic products. Each delegated act shall determine the applicable date of the ecodesign requirements for the relevant product group. Except for legitimate reasons, the applicable date shall not be less than 18 months. The first delegated act shall enter into force no earlier than July 19, 2025.

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