3.1 Building a European Battery Industry

EBA250 is a unique platform for key stakeholders throughout the entire battery value chain. The network includes the European Commission, EU member states, the European Investment Bank and now more than 400 industrial, innovation, academia and financial stakeholders. The objective is to build a strong panEuropean battery industry that is able to help Europe capture a growing market worth 250B€ per year from 2025.

The future is electric. In the massive migration from fossil to electric, the availability of capable batteries is a major issue. The need for efficient batteries – for transport, power and industrial applications – is growing fast and at an increasing pace.

The European Commission launched the European Battery Alliance (EBA) in October 2017 to address this industrial challenge. The annual market value is estimated at €250 billion from 2025 onwards. For Europe, the establishment of a complete domestic battery value chain is imperative for a clean energy transition and a competitive industry.

The economic upside is clear: the market will have an estimated annual value of up to €250 billion by 2025. By combining European cutting-edge competences, financial strength and a crossindustrial approach, a competitive and sustainable production capacity is clearly within reach.

The industrial development programme of the European Battery Alliance, the EBA250, is managed by EIT InnoEnergy. EBA250 is a project-driven community that grew during the course of 2019 from approx. 200 to more than 400 stakeholders, from mining to recycling, actively collaborating to build a strong and competitive European battery industry.

KEY EBA250 MILESTONES IN 2019

In February 2019, Dominique Ristori, Director General for Energy for the European Commission, launched Batteries Europe, the European Technology and Innovation Platform on Batteries. Its aim was to drive research and innovation, knowledge transfer and competitiveness across the European battery value chain. EIT InnoEnergy has been appointed to lead the platform together with the European Energy Research Alliance (EERA) and the European Association for Storage of Energy (EASE).

RESEARCH & INNOVATION ON BATTERIES The platform brings together key European stakeholders in the European batteries research and innovation (R&I) community to support EU competitiveness along the entire battery value chain. Batteries Europe will develop and update research and innovation agendas and roadmaps to spur development of battery projects at both pan- -EU and national levels. In addition, the platform will help the R&I community share information, ideas, best practice, research, and access to finance.

FACILITATING CROSS SECTOR COLLABORATION EIT InnoEnergy, along with EERA and EASE, will provide secretariat and cross collaboration from its involvement with the European Battery Alliance (EBA). Over the next three years, the €1 million project will facilitate coordination of efforts undertaken by public and private partners, and other initiatives involved in battery R&I activities, through events, thematic meetings and networking opportunities. In line with the European Commission’s priority to accelerate the establishment of a competitive European battery industry, the forum will help to empower the Implementation Plan of the SET plan Action 7 and support the launch of two concrete co-operation initiatives beyond the scope of traditional EU funded projects.

Diego Pavia, CEO, EIT InnoEnergy

Energy storage is the linchpin technology for the clean energy system of the future, from grid storage to electric vehicles and cordless tools. It is essential that research and innovation agendas are closely aligned with those in industry to make a seamless transition from concept to reality. Batteries Europe will bring about a step-change in the way we collaborate, from mining, refining, design and manufacture, to digitalisation and recycling. By ensuring research and industry actions are taken in tandem, the platform can fast-track our progress towards a sustainable and competitive battery supply chain in Europe.

BUSINESS INVESTMENT PLATFORM

EIT InnoEnergy launched the online Business Investment Platform (BIP) for the battery value chain, to accelerate transactions between investee and investor, during the 6 th EBA250 stakeholder meeting held on 27 September. Co-designed by industrial players and public and private financial institutions, the BIP accelerates transactions in the European battery value chain.

The EBA reconfirmed that the business size of the European battery value chain will represent more than €250 billion annually, by 2025. Designed to bridge the gap between financial institutions and businesses, the BIP will shorten time to investment and substantially reduce the associated risk for both parties by facilitating and coaching the businesses, thus enhancing the robustness of the investment cases in all required dimensions (technology, team, supply chain, environmental sustainability, off-takers). The BIP’s impressive network, formed via EIT InnoEnergy’s and the EBA250's networks, includes public and private financial institutions and more than 400+ industrial innovation and academic stakeholders.

Speaking at the EBA250 stakeholder meeting, Diego Pavia, CEO at EIT InnoEnergy, said: “The future is electric. Batteries are quickly becoming the cornerstone of the energy transition and €70 billion of frontloaded investment in batteries is required to meet peak European demand by 2023.”

Already utilising the platform are several industrial and financial institutions, for a net worth potential investment value of €20 billion+. The BIP was showcased at EIT InnoEnergy’s flagship event The Business Booster from the 3-4 October 2019 in Paris, France.

In addition, a number of concrete EBA250 projects were implemented throughout the entire value chain, demonstrating evidence that the European industrial battery strategy is bearing fruits. Some of these projects include:

Umicore acquiring cobalt refinery and cathode precursor operations in Finland, which leads to expansion of its integrated battery materials footprint,

Volkswagen and Northvolt forming joint venture for battery production to build a factory for lithium-ion batteries,

The European Commission approving 3.2 billion EUR public support for a panEuropean research and innovation project in all segments of the battery value chain,

EIT InnoEnergy investing 5.8 million EUR into Northvolt’s mission critical battery recycling plant.

Whereas additional efforts and collaboration are needed to fully address the industrial challenge launched only a couple of years ago, we are well on our way. Europe had the strongest growth in EV batteries deployment in 2019 (vs 2018, source Adamas Intelligence) and there is no doubt of the emergence of a European mass EV battery production blueprint. In addition, the work carried out within the field of batteries as a strategic value chain for Europe will make a decisive contribution to both the European Green Deal and EU’s industrial strategy.

Ursula von der Leyen President of the European Commission

Europe must master the key technologies of tomorrow. If we build our technological sovereignty, we will also create new business opportunities for our companies. The story of our Battery Alliance that makes a very good example. Batteries will be strategic in a cleaner and more digital environment. But Europe still relies massively on batteries that are entirely or partly made abroad. This is why we decided to join forces with Member States and the private sector. And so the European Battery Alliance was born. It is thanks to it that the most innovative, long-lasting and clean batteries for electric cars will soon be "Made in Europe". The same model can be applied in other strategic sectors, with technologies that will be crucial for Europe's prosperity and security in the future.