China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has issued a notice to tighten regulations on the cascaded use of retired electric vehicle (EV) power batteries, aiming to address safety risks and industry disorder. The move follows concerns about inconsistent battery quality and unauthorized production practices that threaten public safety.

The MIIT announced on July 30 that it will revoke the "cascaded use" clauses from the 2024 edition of the industry standard for comprehensive utilization of retired EV power batteries. Companies previously designated as "cascaded use" operators will be removed from the list of compliant enterprises, while the list for recycling and reuse remains valid. Any battery products made from retired batteries must now meet the quality standards for their intended application fields. It is prohibited to use retired batteries, whether whole or after disassembly, reassembly, or other processes, in electric bicycles or other areas banned by law or mandatory standards.

Standardization bodies are required to review and either revoke or revise all national and industry standards related to cascaded use to align with the new management requirements. Relevant authorities must accelerate the revision of related policies and standards, strengthen supervision, and crack down on the production of substandard battery products using retired materials. Social organizations, including their committees and branches, must adjust any activities involving cascaded use and cease all related promotional, exhibition, consulting, and training activities.

According to the MIIT's official explanation, the rapid growth of the new energy vehicle industry has led to a surge in retired power batteries, now entering a phase of large-scale decommissioning. In recent years, some companies have processed these batteries through inspection, sorting, disassembly, and reassembly to create battery products for applications like communication base station backup power, known as cascaded use. However, retired batteries often suffer from poor consistency and varying residual energy levels. Without strict quality control, simply disassembling and reassembling them can result in products prone to thermal runaway from overcharging, short circuits, or physical stress, posing significant safety hazards.

To address these risks, the MIIT, along with other agencies, had previously introduced policies and standards for cascaded use, covering design, testing, performance, labeling, and certification. In practice, some companies have misused the cascaded use label to produce and sell substandard batteries, making it difficult for consumers and downstream firms to distinguish between compliant and non-compliant products, leading to confusion and safety threats. In 2025, the MIIT and other departments jointly issued a regulatory measure, the "Management Measures for the Recycling and Comprehensive Utilization of Retired New Energy Vehicle Power Batteries," which clarified that comprehensive utilization refers solely to resource recovery through processes like disassembly, crushing, sorting, and smelting, excluding the cascaded use concept. It also stipulated that all battery products must meet application-specific quality standards and banned the use of retired batteries in electric bicycles and other prohibited areas.

Despite these measures, enforcement actions have revealed that some illegal operators, often hidden in urban-rural fringes or villages, continue to engage in cascaded use activities. They produce batteries for banned applications like electric bicycles, disrupting the market. Furthermore, some existing policy documents and standards still reference cascaded use, conflicting with the new regulations and causing public confusion. The MIIT developed this latest notice to unify policies, strengthen coordination, and prioritize public safety, following the principles of "putting people first and life first."