KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 13,743.15 tonnes of vehicle battery waste classified under scheduled waste code SW103 were generated nationwide between 2021 and 2025, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES).
The ministry said the figure covered all battery waste classified under SW103 and was not specific to electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
EV batteries classified as scheduled waste are regulated under the Environmental Quality Act 1974 [Act 127] and the Environmental Quality (Scheduled Wastes) Regulations 2005, specifically under code SW103.
In a reply published on Parliament’s website today, NRES said that, as of March 4, 2026, seven off-site recovery facilities handling SW103 scheduled waste were operating in Kedah, Selangor, Johor, Perak, Negeri Sembilan and Penang.
“These facilities support the recovery of valuable materials from used batteries, including lithium, nickel and cobalt,” the ministry said.
The ministry was responding to Mohd Nazri Abu Hassan (PN-Merbok), who asked about the number of EV batteries disposed of or recycled between 2021 and 2026.
He also asked whether the government planned to implement the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) principle, which would require EV manufacturers and importers to take back batteries and bear the cost of disposal at the end of their service life.
NRES said the government had outlined a direction for implementing EPR through the Circular Economy Policy Framework for the Malaysian Manufacturing Sector, led by the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI).
The framework aims to extend manufacturers’ responsibilities for managing products at the end of their life cycle, including collection, reuse, remanufacturing and recycling.
“However, a mandatory EPR mechanism requiring EV manufacturers and importers to take back batteries and bear the cost of managing them at the end of their service life has yet to be established,” the ministry said.
It added that further research was needed on legal requirements, manufacturers’ and importers’ obligations, funding mechanisms, and policy co-ordination between NRES and MITI.