“In 2022, the total investment in the EU battery ecosystem exceeded €180 billion”, said European Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič, on Wednesday 1 March, ahead of a new stakeholder meeting of the European Battery Alliance (see EUROPE 13086/30).
According to Mr Šefčovič, “more than 160 industrial projects” are now underway along the industrial value chain, including the construction of “30 gigafactories” announced by the Member States. At this stage, “70 GWh of capacity” has already been installed.
The Commission Vice-President pointed to “the risks” arising from the EU’s over-reliance on critical minerals from third countries such as China. In his opinion, the draft ‘Critical Raw Materials Act’ that the EU institution is expected to present on Tuesday 14 March, along with the ‘Green Deal Industrial Plan’, will be a game changer by “increasing Europe’s sustainable extraction, processing and recycling capacity” and speeding up the licensing of strategic projects.
Localising the entire industry in the EU is a key issue in achieving the transition to a ‘net zero’ industry, said EIB Vice-President Thomas Östros. The EU bank is involved in “€3.7 billion” of battery production, including the construction of gigafactories, he added. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)