PTT sits down with Marcos Raúl Salido, environmental project manager at Bureau Veritas Marine & Offshore, to discover more about the expert insights he plans to share in the ‘EU battery regulations and the digital battery passport for the maritime sector’ panel discussion at Advanced Maritime Expo & Conference 2026, which will take place on June 16, 17 & 18) in Amsterdam in the Netherlands
What are the most significant implications of the EU Batteries Regulation for maritime stakeholders, and how should companies begin preparing for compliance?
The first thing to bear in mind is that the EU Batteries Regulation is not specific to the maritime sector; it will have implications for the battery industry globally. This regulation serves as a legal document in Europe that will govern the entire lifecycle of batteries, and introduces new requirements for carbon footprint calculations, supply chain due diligence, waste management and data disclosure, among others. Any battery manufacturer, distributor or importer seeking to place their batteries in the EU market will have to comply with this regulation.
In the maritime industry, compliance will primarily fall under battery system manufacturers, shipyards or systems integrators, depending on who is considered to be placing the battery in the EU market. However, the overall maritime ecosystem, and especially parties handling batteries at their end-of-life, will benefit from the Digital Battery Passports mandated by the regulation, which will improve access to documentation and historical data about battery performance and usage conditions.
To prepare for compliance, affected parties should thoroughly understand the regulation’s requirements, make the necessary arrangements to collect data from suppliers, and partner with trusted notified bodies for third-party verification as required.
The Digital Battery Passport introduces new requirements around data transparency and lifecycle tracking. What practical challenges do you foresee in implementing this within the maritime sector?
An important aspect to be worked out concerns achieving the right regulatory interpretation and understanding of how these requirements apply in the maritime industry. The regulation is an umbrella document covering many types of batteries and industries, and its definitions and practicalities may not capture the realities of complex maritime value chains and marine battery systems.
This is being addressed under the coordination of the Maritime Battery Forum, which has launched a dedicated working group to discuss implementation challenges within the maritime industry. The group aims to identify where additional guidance is needed and provide a practical approach for the maritime sector to comply with the battery passport requirements.
Beyond regulatory interpretation, there are as well technical and operational considerations. Implementing a Digital Battery Passport requires a complex digital ecosystem involving multiple stakeholders, and industry-wide implementation will depend on strong standardization.
With multiple stakeholders involved – from manufacturers to shipyards and class societies – how important is collaboration in ensuring successful adoption of these regulations?
It’s critical. The parties responsible need to engage with their suppliers as soon as possible to avoid being caught off-guard by the upcoming requirements.
This is especially important given the tight compliance timelines (February 2027 in the case of the battery passport) and the fact that certain technical requirements have not yet been set in stone by the [European] Commission. So, good communication among stakeholders and maintaining flexibility to adapt as requirements evolve are essential.
Furthermore, the Digital Battery Passport is designed to be a living document. Keeping it updated throughout the battery’s lifetime will require a shared effort across the supply chain.
Ultimately, the battery passport aims to enhance the sharing of standardized sustainability data across the supply chain and, in line with circular economy principles, enable better value retention strategies when the battery reaches end-of-life. But to achieve this, we must ensure that the available battery documentation and use-phase data provide valuable insights into the battery’s condition at end-of-life.
Robust coordination and data handling systems will be critical to ensure that any changes in battery state are properly captured and verified throughout its lifetime.
As electrification accelerates in maritime, how do you see regulatory frameworks influencing innovation and investment in battery technologies?
Electrification in the maritime sector makes sense from both environmental and energy system perspectives. Resources for alternative fuels are limited, and the direct use of electricity as a fuel is simply more energy efficient. Therefore, I believe the signal should be clearer: electrification should be a priority whenever it is feasible.
The two main incentivizing regulatory frameworks in place today, the EU ETS and FuelEU maritime regulation, already offer some financial incentives for electrification, especially when using BESS charged via OPS, which is considered zero-emission in both frameworks. FuelEU specially generates considerable discussion around biofuel use to generate surplus units, and rightly so. However, we should not overlook that electricity is also considered a zero-emission fuel under this regulation and can be used to comply with it and to generate FuelEU surpluses.
It is also encouraging that both the EU Industrial Maritime Strategy and Ports Strategy highlight the need to accelerate electrification efforts and to provide more access to finance for innovative clean energy technologies. Concrete actions have already been announced, such as the creation of a dedicated mechanism under the EU ETS to reward shipping companies’ adoption of clean propulsion technologies through the allocation of free allowances.
What is the key message you would like delegates to take away from your presentation – and who are you particularly hoping to connect with at the conference?
I would like to convey that these regulations should be viewed not merely as a regulatory burden, but as an opportunity to improve how we share sustainability data across our supply chains. This is especially true for the Digital Battery Passport, which can be a valuable tool for the maritime industry to support circularity and transparency regarding the sustainability of BESS.
Since the EU Batteries Regulation will impact multiple stakeholders, I would welcome the opportunity to connect with anyone interested in learning more about its regulatory requirements and seeking support from Bureau Veritas in their compliance journey.
Advanced Maritime Expo & Conference 2026 will take place at the RAI Amsterdam in the Netherlands on June 16-18.
