Digital Product Passports and International Trade Law: Assessing WTO compatibility and international standard-setting activities

This paper addresses trade-law aspects of battery supply chains by focusing on data sharing. This focus stems from the ambition of the European Union (EU) to regulate battery supply chains through the establishment of battery passports (or digital product passports). The EU has two primary objectives based on its circular economy policy: establishing a recycling system for batteries (to close the production loop) and supporting the competitiveness of EU industries in battery production. On this point, the EU is motivated by both sustainability concerns and geopolitical interests in its battery production. In this regard, it is important to recognize that battery passports are relevant to economic security policies.

This paper identifies the EU digital battery passport as a trade issue because establishing such a passport is a prerequisite for economic operators to place batteries on the EU market. The EU Batteries Regulation has already affected Asian producers who intend to export to the EU. Accordingly, it examines how EU digital battery passports may (or may not) comply with the WTO rules. It also explores international collaboration and standardization for cross-border data-sharing and highlights the collaboration between Japanese and German car and battery industries on cross-border data-sharing. Moreover, this paper touches upon several international standardization efforts to advance trustworthy, interoperable data governance and conclude by arguing how the case of batteries can generate societal demand for digital passports in Japan, which may lead to a dynamic ecosystem of sustainability and circularity with broader acceptance by multiple stakeholders.