Beyond compliance: how NZ can leapfrog to world-class battery stewardship
Around the world, stewardship schemes for end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) and large batteries are no longer experiments. They’re proving what works and what doesn’t. The most successful models don’t just tick regulatory boxes. They protect communities, unlock second-life value, and make recycling viable at scale.
For New Zealand, these examples aren’t simply interesting case studies. They’re roadmaps. The flood of end-of-life EV batteries hasn’t hit our shores yet, but it will. If we act now, we have the chance to leapfrog into a world-class system from the start, one that is pragmatic, circular, and distinctly Aotearoa.
The Netherlands: thirty years of stewardship embedded in industry DNA
When people talk about “mature” stewardship, the Netherlands sets the benchmark. Auto Recycling Nederland (ARN) has been operating since 1993, not because the government forced it into existence, but because the mobility sector itself took the lead. Three decades on, it’s a producer-funded model that has become part of the industrial fabric.
The numbers are remarkable: in 2023, more than 133,000 ELVs were processed with 98.7% useful reuse, including 263 tonnes of EV batteries. The majority were recycled or repurposed, far surpassing EU targets. But the Dutch achievement isn’t just about percentages. It’s about trust. Every vehicle and battery is registered through national portals before dismantling. Every importer and manufacturer pays into the system. Every result is published openly.
For New Zealand, the lesson isn’t just about systems and portals. It’s about mindset. Stewardship in the Netherlands is treated as an industrial strategy, not just waste management. ARN co-leads the Battery Competence Cluster NL, backed by €300 million in national investment. That’s foresight. It positions the Netherlands not only to meet recycling targets but to build competitiveness in a circular economy.
If we want credibility at home and influence abroad, we need a scheme that funds the chain end to end, invests in capability, and publishes results transparently. That’s how you build trust and attract investment.
Ireland: Making stewardship free, easy, and safe
Ireland shows what happens when you strip away friction for operators. The Electric ELVES programme, built by vehicle manufacturers, ensures that EV batteries are collected and recycled at no cost to dismantlers. It’s simple, it’s free, and it’s safe.
But the real genius lies in the supports wrapped around the system. Since 2018, Electric ELVES has delivered specialist training to Authorised Treatment Facilities (ATFs), equipping operators to safely depower, remove, and store high-voltage packs. Ireland’s Environmental Protection Authority has also published clear national guidance on safe storage and transport, closing the gaps that so often lead to fire risk and insurance headaches.
The scheme doesn’t stop at compliance. Through its Electric Loops research initiative, it has published the first Irish dataset on reuse and recycling values actively shaping second-life markets instead of treating all batteries as waste.
For New Zealand, the message is clear: safety and competence must be built into the scheme from day one. Free collection reduces the risk of unsafe stockpiling. Training and guidance build confidence for dismantlers. And early evidence on second-life values encourages investment in circular business models. Ireland proves you don’t need to be big to build global best practice. You just need alignment.
Portugal: Valorcar as a national circular economy strategy
Portugal’s Valorcar system takes the concept of stewardship and elevates it to a national circular economy strategy. Established in 2003, Valorcar now coordinates a network of more than 330 dismantling, reception, and fragmentation centres across the country, including the Azores and Madeira.
The 2024 results speak volumes: 107,988 vehicles dismantled, with 90.8% reused or recycled and 94% recovered. More importantly, every licensed dismantler must issue a digital certificate of destruction, closing the door on leakage into unregulated channels and generating robust national data.
Valorcar has also invested heavily in innovation, from advanced plastics separation to pilot projects that repurpose recovered materials into new automotive components. It pressures importers of used vehicles to take financial responsibility, ensuring the system stays viable even as older cars flood the market.
For New Zealand, Valorcar highlights the importance of governance and traceability. A stewardship scheme cannot just be about compliance; it must produce reliable national data, plug financial gaps, and invest in R&D to tackle complex waste streams. That’s what makes it an engine of circular innovation, not just a recycling programme.
Belgium: designing for second life first
Belgium offers a masterclass in how to transform risk into opportunity. Febelauto, the country’s producer responsibility organisation, has built a “pre-cycling” chain that standardises diagnostics before anything moves downstream.
Two bold moves stand out. First, the creation of a high-security lithium-ion warehouse at the Port of Antwerp. With 24/7 monitoring, deep-discharge lines, and emergency integration with fire services, Belgium has turned a liability into an engineered, insurable process. Second, Febelauto consolidated its capability around reuse through Sortbat’s acquisition of Watt4Ever. The result is a single chain that can safely collect, dismantle, test, and recondition modules for stationary storage before recycling becomes necessary.
Independent observers call this circular economy architecture not just waste management. By aligning Authorised Treatment Facilities (ATFs), recyclers, insurers, and OEMs, Belgium has created a system where stewardship is investable.
For New Zealand, the takeaway isn’t “build a warehouse.” It’s about designing the whole pre-recycling journey: certifying a national tier of ATFs for high-voltage work, underwriting monitored storage tied to major ports, and publishing second-life acceptance criteria. That’s how you give insurers and OEMs confidence, and how you turn batteries from a problem into a platform for growth.
What these leaders have in common
Across the Netherlands, Ireland, Portugal, and Belgium, a clear pattern emerges. The best schemes are:
- Producer-funded and performance-led: annual metrics published openly.
- Operator-first in design: dismantlers and recyclers supported, not penalised.
- Second-life by default: diagnostics decide reuse versus recycling.
- Backed by public-sector partnerships: leakage closed, compliance lifted.
- Proactive in communication: clear messaging builds public and industry trust.
These aren’t compliance tools. They’re industry strategies.
The B.I.G view: leadership through action
New Zealand has a choice. We can wait for regulation, or we can lead. The global playbook is clear: fund the chain, support operators, standardise diagnostics, and publish results. Do that, and stewardship stops being a cost centre; it becomes a platform for safety, trust, and investment.
At B.I.G., we believe the time to act is now. Stewardship should not be measured by the paperwork it generates, but by the outcomes it delivers: safer communities, valuable second-life markets, and higher recovery of critical materials.
The flood of batteries is coming. Let’s not wait to be measured against someone else’s rulebook. Let’s design the circular system we want to be measured by.
