Analysis · November 2026
Lead in the Polish economyvalue, circularity and security of supply
Poland produces more lead than it consumes – almost entirely from recycling. The closed loop of lead-acid batteries generates EUR 241 million of value added, 4,600 jobs and a EUR 271 million surplus in battery trade.
At a glance
241EUR m
of gross value added – the lead chain with its domestic suppliers
4,563persons employed
in the lead chain and its Polish suppliers
76EUR m
a year for public finances (PLN 328 m, excluding VAT)
47kt
of net lead exports in all forms a year
78%
of Polish refined lead is secondary – from batteries, scrap and smelter residues
271EUR m
surplus in lead-acid battery trade in 2024
Central values for 2024. The line under each figure shows the 90% uncertainty band (P5–P95) on a scale from zero. Gross contribution, not net effects.
Seven findings
More lead than Poland consumes – from recycling
Secondary lead accounted for 78% of Polish refined lead output in 2024. Secondary output equals 84% of apparent domestic consumption, and total refined lead output 108%. Poland has practically mined no lead ore since 2020.
EUR 241 million of value added
The lead chain directly generates EUR 147 million of gross value added, EUR 241 million with domestic suppliers and EUR 283 million with employees’ spending. Battery manufacturing accounts for the largest share, 52%.
4,600 jobs and high productivity
About 2,850 people work directly in the chain and about 4,550 including suppliers. Secondary smelting generates about EUR 166 thousand of value added per person employed – roughly twice the average for NACE 24.43. Taxes and contributions amount to about EUR 76 million a year.
A closed battery loop
About 76 kt of lead was recovered in 2024 from batteries and scrap collected in Poland, and smelters produced 87 kt of secondary lead. A PLN 30 deposit charged when a car battery is bought without returning the old one supports very high collection.
Control over a toxic metal
The chain’s main environmental service is the controlled treatment of about 117 kt of spent batteries a year: lead returns to production, at least 13 kt of electrolyte is neutralised and 4.7 kt of polypropylene returns to use.
A hub of the European lead loop
About 62% of refined lead is exported, and about 55% of the lead used by battery makers is imported. Counting lead in all forms, Poland is a net exporter of about 47 kt a year, and the battery trade surplus is EUR 271 million.
The Batteries Regulation as an opportunity
From 18 August 2031, vehicle batteries and larger industrial batteries must contain at least 85% recycled lead. In the circular battery chain scenario value added rises by about EUR 33 million; relocating part of battery production abroad would cut it by about EUR 41 million.
From a spent battery to a new one – four links
The PB-PL model covers collection and trade, secondary smelting, lead recovered in copper and zinc metallurgy, and battery manufacturing. Polish smelters sell lead mainly to battery makers.
Collection and trade
Spent batteries and lead scrap
- EUR m GVA
- 14
- employed
- 615
Secondary smelting
Breaking, smelting, refining and alloys
- EUR m GVA
- 43
- employed
- 261
Lead from Cu and Zn metallurgy
Copper smelter dusts, zinc-lead oxides
- EUR m GVA
- 14
- employed
- 87
Battery manufacturing
Starter, industrial and traction batteries
- EUR m GVA
- 76
- employed
- 1,890
Batteries
vehicles · backup power · defence
+EUR 271 mbattery trade surplus, 2024
Economy
Value added, jobs, taxes
Environment
Control of a hazardous waste stream, emissions
Strategy
Lead supply, battery trade, resilience
EUR 241 million of value added and 4,600 jobs
Purchases from Polish suppliers – energy, chemicals, transport and services – add EUR 94 million of value added and about 1,710 jobs, and employees’ spending EUR 42 million and about 910 jobs.
- Direct
- Supply chain
- Employees’ spending
Gross value added, EUR m
Persons employed
A gross contribution at fixed input–output coefficients, not net jobs; persons employed, not full-time equivalents.
Where Polish refined lead comes from
Smelters mainly process spent batteries collected in Poland; lead is also recovered from copper and zinc smelter residues. Domestic output is of the same order as the lead needed for battery production in Poland.
kt Pb, 2024
- Batteries collected in Poland · 72.0
- Imported batteries · 6.3
- Other scrap and waste · 8.7
- Zinc-lead oxides · 14.8
- Copper metallurgy · 28.8
A safe loop for a toxic metal
A tonne of secondary lead in Europe carries about 0.98 t CO₂e against about 1.82 t for primary lead – 46% less – and 57% less primary energy. The climate benefit is modest; the main environmental value of lead recycling lies in controlling a hazardous waste stream.
Carbon footprint per tonne of lead, t CO₂e
−46%
Avoided emissions under variants, kt CO₂e
What lead recycling really protects
- At least 13 kt of electrolyte a year is neutralised – into gypsum at Orzeł Biały – and sulphur from the lead paste goes into sodium sulphate or gypsum.
- 4.7 kt of polypropylene from battery cases returns to use as granulate.
- Lead emissions to air in Poland fell from 542 t in 1990 to 222 t in 2024; lead and battery production accounts for about 40 t a year.
Uncontrolled battery breaking, still found in some regions of the world, is a documented source of soil contamination and lead poisoning. The benefits depend on meeting BAT emission levels and the new EU occupational exposure limits.
Exporter of batteries and lead
Poland is a significant producer and exporter of lead-acid batteries – the largest buyers are Germany, France and Italy. Unwrought lead is imported mainly from EU countries.
Trade balance by product group, EUR m
- Lead-acid batteries
- Unwrought lead
- Spent batteries and scrap
Largest partners, 2025 · 249 kt
- DE43.2
- FR29.1
- IT28.6
- SE20.1
- ES14.0
- CZ11.2
- BE10.3
- UK9.3
Largest partners, 2025 · 69 kt
- SE18.3
- DE17.5
- EE5.3
- CZ5.1
- BE3.5
- UK3.3
- IT3.2
- HR3.0
Where the lead industry operates
Secondary smelters operate in Upper Silesia, lead is recovered from residues in Legnica, Głogów and Miasteczko Śląskie, and batteries are made in Poznań, Bielsko-Biała, Piastów and Chodzież.
- Secondary smelting
- Lead from Cu and Zn metallurgy
- Battery manufacturing
- Other uses
List of plants
- Orzeł Biały S.A.Piekary Śląskie · Secondary smeltingBattery breaking; secondary smelting and refining; lead alloysScale: ~100 kt/yr battery scrap; 64.9 kt sold (2024)
- Baterpol S.A. (Boryszew)Katowice / Świętochłowice · Secondary smeltingBattery breaking; secondary smelting and refining; PP and sodium sulphateScale: ~70 kt/yr battery scrap; 32.8 kt sold (2024)
- KGHM – HM Legnica (rafineria ołowiu)Legnica · Lead from Cu and Zn metallurgyRefining of lead recovered from copper smeltingScale: 28.8 kt refined lead (2024)
- KGHM – HM Głogów (wydział ołowiu)Głogów · Lead from Cu and Zn metallurgyCrude lead from copper-smelter dustsScale: feed for Legnica refinery
- HC Miasteczko Śląskie (Stalprodukt)Miasteczko Śląskie · Lead from Cu and Zn metallurgyISP zinc-lead smelter on secondary oxidesScale: 14.8 kt refined lead (2024)
- Exide Technologies – PoznańPoznań · Battery manufacturingStarter batteries incl. AGM and EFBScale: n/a
- EnerSys – Bielsko-BiałaBielsko-Biała · Battery manufacturingTraction and industrial batteriesScale: >2.2 m 2V cells/yr; >900 staff
- ZAP Sznajder Batterien S.A.Piastów · Battery manufacturingStarter and AGM batteriesScale: ~2 m units/yr with Jenox
- Jenox AkumulatoryChodzież · Battery manufacturingStarter batteriesScale: see ZAP
- ZM Silesia – Oława (Boryszew)Oława · Other usesLead oxide (red lead)Scale: 4.1 kt red lead (2024)
- MESKO S.A. (PGZ)Skarżysko-Kamienna · Other usesSmall-calibre ammunition (lead cores)Scale: 250 m rounds/yr capacity (2025)
Milestones 2024–2031
Lead sits at the intersection of three areas of EU law: the Batteries Regulation, chemicals law and worker protection. For Polish smelters the battery rules are largely an opportunity – they create a stable market for secondary lead.
Batteries Regulation (EU) 2023/1542
Replaces the Batteries Directive; extended producer responsibility.
REACH: lead in PVC
Restriction of lead content in PVC.
Recycling efficiency 75%
Minimum recycling efficiency for lead-acid batteries.
Occupational exposure limits
Transposition deadline of Directive (EU) 2024/869: 0.03 mg/m³.
Commission: recycling targets adequate
No change to recovery levels proposed.
Lead recovery 90%
Material recovery level for lead.
Biological limit 15 µg/100 ml
Lower permitted blood-lead level for workers.
Recycling efficiency 80%
Higher threshold for lead-acid batteries.
85% recycled lead
In SLI, electric-vehicle and industrial batteries > 2 kWh.
Lead recovery 95%
Target material recovery level for lead.
Battery production drives the chain’s value
Three “what if” calculations at constant 2024 prices with rising labour productivity. Keeping battery production in Poland matters as much for the chain’s value as recycling itself.
Value added incl. supply chain · EUR m
Persons employed incl. supply chain · people
Avoided emissions · kt CO₂e
What would strengthen the chain
The report sets out six directions for public action.
- Implement the Batteries Regulation pragmatically – adopt the national act and clear rules for reporting lead recovery.
- Keep battery collection universal and free of charge, and tighten control of illegal breaking.
- Make procedures predictable – shorter, digital permitting and procedures for shipments of spent batteries.
- Support investment in worker health protection and in reducing emissions to BAT levels.
- Treat battery manufacturing and recycling as one chain in industrial and energy policy.
- Include domestic battery supply and recycling capacity in critical infrastructure and defence planning.
Method in brief
PB-PL uses the architecture of the Chamber’s integrated models and adapts it to lead – from the metal mass balance to effects in the economy.
Scope and allocation
Four segments P1–P4; lead share of NACE 46.77, 38.3 and 24.43; battery manufacturing estimated indirectly.
Lead mass balance
Batteries, scrap, oxides and lead from copper metallurgy; trade in lead content.
Economy
Leontief input–output model, Type I and II, on the FIGARO 2023 table for Poland.
Environment
Avoided-burden method: footprints of primary and secondary lead (ILA) and polypropylene.
Strategy
Consumption coverage, trade in lead in all forms, import concentration, margin.
Uncertainty
Monte Carlo 10,000 draws with a Gaussian copula; sensitivity analysis and scenarios.
Limitations
- Results are a gross contribution at fixed coefficients, not net policy effects.
- Statistical data on battery manufacturing are confidential – segment P4 is estimated from trade and domestic demand.
- The report does not value avoided health damage; life-cycle data are not territorial emissions of Polish plants.
The report was prepared with the help of artificial intelligence tools for data processing, modelling and text editing.
Download and cite
The full report contains the regulatory context, methodology, all parameters with ranges and sources, consistency checks, the list of installations and the bibliography.
IGMNiR (2026), Lead in the Polish economy: value, circularity and security of supply. An integrated assessment of the lead industry in Poland (PB-PL model), Economic Chamber of Non-Ferrous Metals and Recycling, November 2026.
Model run identifier: PBPL-1.0-239ddbbc81