Abstract:

As India’s electric mobility sector grows, the Battery Waste Management Rules (2022) face a critical hurdle: undervalued EPR certificates. Currently, certificate prices are too low to cover the actual costs of environmentally sound recycling. This creates a risk of “paper compliance”, where credits are traded without genuine material recovery.

Furthermore, the domestic circular economy is being undermined by the export of black mass, which drains valuable feedstock from the country. Without a regulated floor price for EPR certificates and stricter oversight, recyclers cannot afford the advanced technology needed for high-yield recovery, threatening both India’s resource security and its environmental goals.