Almost two years after the presentation of the initial proposal, on June 28, 2024, the text of Regulation (EU) 2024/1781, #ESPR (Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation) was published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
The Regulation establishes a framework for defining ecodesign requirements for sustainable products, with the aim of improving their durability, reparability, energy efficiency, and recyclability, and introduces a digital product passport to track sustainability information.
What are the main new features?
What products are included in the scope of the Regulation?
The scope of Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 is very broad and aims to improve the environmental sustainability of products by reducing their overall carbon and environmental footprint throughout their entire life cycle.
In general, the regulation applies to any physical good (with a few exceptions) placed on the market or put into service, including components and intermediate products. The objective is to extend the ecodesign approach to a wide range of products, going beyond the previous Directive 2009/125/EC which mainly focused on energy-related products.
Priority product groups
According to Article 18, paragraph 5 of the Regulation, the Commission will adopt an initial work plan by April 19, 2025, in which it will define the priorities for setting ecodesign requirements for the following product groups:
- Iron and steel
- Aluminum
- Textile products, in particular clothing and footwear
- Furniture, including mattresses
- Tyres
- Detergents
- Paints
- Lubricants
- Chemicals
and of course, energy-related products.
What do manufacturers have to do?
Since manufacturers are primarily responsible for the conformity of products as they possess detailed knowledge of the design and production process, they have a series of obligations, among which the following stand out:
- Design and manufacture products that comply with the regulations.
- Ensure that products are accompanied by information on their environmental performance.
- Ensure that a Digital Product Passport (DPP) is available, including the storage of a backup copy with an independent third-party DPP service provider.
- Before placing on the market or putting into service, carry out or have carried out the conformity assessment procedure specified in the applicable delegated act and draw up the required technical documentation.
- Draw up a EU Declaration of Conformity to attest to the product’s compliance with the regulation and the applicable delegated acts.
- Affix the CE marking to compliant products.