What documents do I need for the passport of a home battery?
For a home battery or another stationary storage system above 2 kWh, it is essentially about the same categories of documents as for other industrial batteries: technical specifications from the manufacturer, a declaration of conformity, data on material composition and carbon footprint, test results on safety and performance, and instructions for disassembly and end of life. What distinguishes these batteries is that those documents rarely come from one party.
A home battery usually consists of cells from one manufacturer, a battery pack assembled by another party, and a housing or inverter supplied by the installer. Before you can compile the passport, you must first map out which document comes from whom, and whether everything you need is already with the right link in the chain.
Which documents are typically requested
The regulation requires a combination of technical and administrative documentation. Think of the unique identification of the battery, the declaration of conformity with the applicable requirements, data on the origin and composition of critical raw materials, information on the lifespan and performance under normal conditions of use, and instructions for safe disposal, repair or recycling. For stationary systems, information about the combination with the management system (the software that controls the battery) is often added, because it affects safety and lifespan.
Which documents are precisely applicable depends on how the battery is placed on the market and what role you play in that. per situation worked out which documents belong to your battery type provides a first overview before you discuss it with your supplier or installer.
The detail that plays the most here: who supplies what
With a home battery, the question of who supplies which document is at least as important as the question of which documents exist. The cell manufacturer typically has data on material composition and safety tests. The party that assembles the pack adds data on the housing and internal wiring. And the installer who places the system with the end user is often the one who offers the whole thing under their own name or brand, and thereby assumes a role in the chain that requires its own documentation.
That last step is sometimes overlooked in practice. An installation company that purchases battery packs, sells them together with solar panels and delivers them under its own conditions, may thereby assume a different position than that of reseller alone. Which role is precisely applicable and which documents go with it is something the supervisory authority or a lawyer provides clarification on; this article only describes where the question arises, not the answer for your specific situation.
Where you get these documents from
In most cases, it starts with a targeted request to your supplier: which documents already exist, in which language, and in which format. Documentation that only exists on paper or is scattered across multiple emails is difficult to trace at the moment the passport needs to be compiled or updated. A fixed point of contact at the supplier, with a fixed set of documents that is sent with each delivery, prevents having to work this out again per order.
To see where the information for a passport comes from exactly and how it is recorded, you can read how the data for a passport are collected and checked. This also gives you an idea of what you yourself must provide and what is already available from the manufacturer.
First see where you stand
If you do not yet know exactly whether your battery system falls under the obligation, or which documents are relevant in your situation, it is usually faster to clarify that first than to work through all document categories separately. With a few questions get an initial indication of your situation provides a direction based on a short questionnaire, without you having to gather all the documentation first.
If you want to proceed after that, for example to register your company as a provider or to structure the submission of documents, you can create a business account to arrange that for your company For your own situation, and for the question of what role your company exactly fulfils, a lawyer or the competent supervisory authority remains the appropriate point of contact.
If you prefer to first look at the broader background, you will find in the knowledge base the other topics around the digital battery passport, from the regulation itself to the conversation with your software supplier.