PEP Eco passport for EV charging – EPDs for the Pod Solo and Twin chargers

As part of its commitment to product transparency and environmental performance, Pod (formerly Pod Point), a leading UK-based EV charging company, engaged Ecomatters to perform a life cycle assessment (LCA) and develop certified PEP Eco passport EPDs for two of its flagship products: the Solo 3 Universal and the Twin T7 single phase charger.

These Type III Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) are now publically registered and meet the requirements of the PEP Eco passport programme, a globally recognised EPD framework tailored to electrotechnical equipment.

The primary objective of the project was to generate independently verified environmental information covering the entire product life cycle—from raw materials and manufacturing, to use and end-of-life.

The project included:

• Data collection via detailed questionnaires on materials, production, transport, installation, product use and end-of-life.
• Cradle-to-grave LCA conducted with SimaPro and Ecoinvent, using regionally appropriate electricity and transport data to reflect real-world usage scenarios
• PEP Eco passport-compliant EPDs, verified and published in accordance with ISO 14025, and the most recent PEP Product Category Rules (PCR-ed4-EN-2021 0906) as well as the Product Specific Rules for EV charging infrastructures (PSR-0018-ed1-EN-2021 09 13).

When conducting an LCA for electrotechnical equipment, it is important to understand the requirements around whether you need to account for electricity consumption within the product use phase. For the case of an EV charger, the PEP Eco passport framework clarifies this. Here the electricity supplied to the EV itself can be excluded from the LCA, as its impact is assigned to the vehicle’s operation. However, the LCA must account for the charger’s own energy use during operation within the use phase.

This includes:

• Energy lost through heat dissipation
• Intrinsic energy consumption for operating the system

These values are calculated using a formula that combines predefined scenario parameters (based on the charger type) and company-specific data for the product.

Following the PSR, the environmental impact of the charging unit should be expressed per kWh supplied to the electric vehicle. To do this the total energy delivered by the charger over its reference service life is calculated. The default and mandatory use scenario, taken from the PEP Eco passport framework, is applied:

• Reference lifetime: 10 years
• Charges per week: 2
• Charging time per session: 3.87 hours at 7 kW
• Total electricity supplied: 28,174 kWh per charging point

This standardised approach ensures consistency and comparability across EPDs for EV charging systems.

The PEP EPDs can be accessed on the PEP platform. These documents provide verified life cycle information that can support procurement, compliance, and communication activities in line with regulatory and market expectations.

The PEP Eco passport for EV charging and other electronic products is a standardised way for electronics manufacturers to:

• Publish transparent environmental performance data
• Meet regulatory and customer demands across the EU and UK
• Position products competitively

Ecomatters provides end-to-end support in developing compliant EPDs, from data collection and LCA modelling to third-party verification and registration.

Ecomatters is a life cycle assessment and sustainability consultancy based in the Netherlands, with over a decade of experience in LCA, EPD development, and environmental strategy for technical industries.

If you’re looking to publish a PEP Eco passport for EV charging or other electronics products, don’t hesitate to contact us.