Eco-modulation: encouraging oil manufacturers to better design their products

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Since the EPR scheme came into force in 2022, marketers (manufacturers, importers, retailers selling own-brand mineral oils or equipment containing mineral oils) are required to join Cyclevia, the sector’s producer responsibility organization.

By joining, they pay a financial contribution that is proportional to the quantity of oils that they introduce onto the French market. This “eco-fee” is collected by the producer responsibility organization and is then redistributed in the form of funding to the sector’s stakeholders who collect and treat this waste. However, this is not all that it funds. It also pays for technical studies and for research and development to be undertaken, enabling the sector to move forward and achieve greater circularity and better environmental performances.

As a logical continuation of its work, at the beginning of the year Cyclevia introduced a financial incentive aiming at encouraging lubricant manufactures to design finished products that are easier to collect, sort, recycle and regenerate or that incorporate regenerated base oils. The goal is also to encourage producers to reduce the number of products labelled as hazardous within their product ranges.

This “eco-modulation”, validated by the French Ministry of Ecological Transition, is now applied to all types of products. Applicable as from 1 January 2023 on the quantities sold during the year, in reality it will be applied in January 2024 during the annual adjustments.

Eco-modulation is calculated according to 3 environmental performance criteria and gives rise to the following fee scale.

• The incorporation of recycled or regenerated oil: -20%

• EU Ecolabel product: completely exempt

• Hazardous product according to the EU 1272/2008 CLP regulation: +40%

Learn more on eco-modulation