A briefing on battery regulation, China's supply chain, and prices, for the people who buy and deploy the cells.
The EU harmonised label format still is not fixed, so its deadline has not really started. Our June issue flagged that the Article 13(10) implementing act, which defines the harmonised label format, had missed its own adoption date. The nuance that moves the deadline: the Annex VI Part A label content legally applies "from 18 August 2026 or 18 months after the date of entry into force of the implementing act referred to in Article 13(10), whichever is the latest," and as of late August that act (draft published December 2025, consultation closed January 2026) still has not been adopted or published in the Official Journal. So while the general labelling duty is live, the full harmonised-format deadline is deferred beyond 18 August, and the real 18-month clock only starts when the act appears.
Chinese battery imports into the EU jumped 39%, and Brussels is signalling a trade case. Chinese lithium-ion battery imports into the EU rose about 39% year on year to EUR 16.4 billion (USD 19.1 billion) in the first half of 2026. The EU has so far imposed no anti-dumping or countervailing duties on standalone Chinese cells, since its existing countervailing duties target battery electric vehicles rather than cells, but a separate anti-dumping investigation opened in 2026 and has not concluded.
The US duty on Chinese cells is now 40.9%. For US entries on or after 24 July 2026, Chinese-origin lithium-ion cells, modules and packs (HTS 8507.60.00) carry a combined 40.9% duty: a 3.4% base MFN rate, the 25% Section 301 technology-transfer duty in force since 1 January 2026, and a new 12.5% Section 301 forced-labor duty from 24 July 2026, replacing the 38.4% stack that ran from 24 February. Our earlier coverage flagged the Section 301 wall going up; the change is the forced-labor tranche that lifts the total.
| Date | What changes | Who should care |
|---|---|---|
| 24 Jul 2026 | US duty on Chinese cells rises to 40.9% (HTS 8507.60.00) | US importers |
| 18 Aug 2026 | EU general labelling duty live; harmonised format spec deferred | EU importers |
| 18 Feb 2027 | EU QR code and digital passport (>2 kWh) mandatory | Importers, cell makers |
Combined 40.9% on HTS 8507.60.00 for US entries on or after 24 Jul 2026. Source: Pacific Battery.
Hithium opened the factory behind its 1300Ah long-duration cell. Hithium opened a long-duration energy storage industrial park in Heze, Shandong, with over RMB 13 billion (USD 1.9 billion) invested across about 80 hectares, whose fifth-generation line it calls the industry's first single line to exceed 15 GWh, built to supply the 1300Ah cell for 8-hour storage with mass delivery planned for Q4 2026. Our June issue previewed the 1300Ah cell at SNEC; this is the plant that will build it at volume.
China opened the 10th compliance-whitelist round for lithium-battery makers. A MIIT provincial notice in Ningxia, dated 24 June 2026, opened the 10th-batch application round for China's Lithium-ion Battery Industry Specification Conditions whitelist, with a 13 July 2026 submission deadline, covering cell, pack, cathode, anode, separator and electrolyte makers, though foil and current-collector makers are excluded. It also requires already-listed firms to file 2025 self-examinations and monthly compliance reports through the ldchy.cn platform, with delisting risk for those that fall short.
| Vendor | What opened / shipped (2026) | Key figure | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hithium | Heze long-duration storage park opens; fifth-gen production line | >15 GWh single line | Q4 2026 |
Lithium carbonate split between the dollar and RMB benchmarks this week. Benchmark Mineral Intelligence assessed battery-grade lithium carbonate (min 99.5%, spot, CIF Asia) at USD 18,310 per tonne, or USD 18.31 per kg, on 12 August 2026, down almost 5% week on week, even as SMM's RMB domestic print rose the same week.
The first repurposing-specific safety standard is now published. IEC 63330-1:2024, "Repurposing of secondary batteries, Part 1: General requirements," has been published as the first safety and performance evaluation standard written specifically for repurposed lithium-ion batteries; Part 2, which sets the classification criteria for which batteries are eligible to be repurposed, is still in development.
Catch relabelled or aged stock when the delivery lands. Every Chinese-made cell carries a printed traceability code, and you can only read it once the goods are physically in front of you. Paste it into the decoder and you get the manufacturer, chemistry, spec and exact production date in seconds — enough to flag relabelled or calendar-aged stock at incoming inspection.
Paste any code from a Chinese-made cell. The decoder reads the maker, the spec and the true factory date. Full tool at batterydays.com.
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