Super-charged growth in battery demand in conference spotlight

Pillot says highlights of this year’s conference will be the focus on the growth of demand for batteries in Europe and worldwide — and the need for security of materials supply.

“Most of the companies involved in the construction of gigafactories will be represented,” he says.

These and keynote speakers will include the CEO of Automated Cells Company Yann Vincent, Verkor CEO Benoit Lemaignan, the VP of operational excellence at Northvolt Luc Hovan and Envision’s Europe MD Maher Chebo.

Also attending will be Gery Bonduelle, EVP of sales and marketing for Freyr Battery, CATL’s general manager for France Jean-Baptiste Zalmanski, Jeff Dahn — whose research group at Dalhousie University focuses on lithium ion battery research and works exclusively with Tesla — and Jean Marie Tarascon, who is chair of solid-state chemistry and energy at the Collège de France.

The main topic of discussion will as usual center around lithium ion batteries for automotive applications but, as always at the Batteries Event, Pillot said other technologies and applications will be included.

This year’s conference will feature a dedicated session on lead acid, zinc, sulfur and solid-state batteries and topics will be as varied as energy storage systems, aviation, e-buses and space applications.

Avicenne’s analytics continue to look at the role of lead in the automo- tive and energy storage markets.

“Lead acid batteries of course can have advantages over lithium ion in different applications and can cost less. Their record on safety and 99% recycling ability are also factors.

“Lead batteries will still be there in the 2030s.”

However, Pillot says it is important that Avicenne also charts the switch from lead acid to lithium ion batteries in applications that were historically lead, including forklifts, e-bikes in China, UPS systems and in telecoms.

For Pillot, the stand-out development involving other chemistries in recent years is, “without surprise”, increasing R&D into solid-state batteries.

“But there is also strong interest in Na ion, high-manganese cathodes (outside China) and lithium manganese iron phosphate in China.”

Concern in the European market over lucrative incentives being offered to battery manufacturers in the US and Asia is also expected to be a topic of discussion as delegates network and chat on the sidelines of the event.

For Pillot, there are three key geopolitical approaches impacting batteries that are influencing markets.

China’s leaders can introduce new rules and incentives relatively quickly — although they can change them again quickly too.

While in Europe it takes quite some time for the European Commission to introduce legislation, but when the rules are in place they are there for a long while, providing stability, he says.

In the US too, rules can change quickly (as seen by the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act) — “but what will happen to that if there is a change of administration at the next general election?

“However, for the moment it is clear that it is more attractive to invest in the US than in Europe.”

Sustaining the battery materials supply chain, against a background of increasing competition among nations for resources will also be in the conference spotlight.

“Of course we all need to keep an eye on the battery value chain,” Pillot says.

“Raw materials account for 70% of battery costs, so we have to. And as we saw for the first time in 2022, the price of lithium ion batteries increased because of a rise in metal costs.”

That in turn further increases the importance of recycling on a longterm basis, which Pillot says will also come under scrutiny.

“In our forecast, we see a plateau for the lithium ion battery market in 2040-2045 depending on the countries involved. That means that if we recycle let’s say 90% of the battery, recycling could cover the lion’s share of material needs.”

The variety of issues covered in depth has been key to the Batteries Event’s longevity and its ability to garner ever-increasing interest, says Pillot.

In 2020, the event attracted 200 attendees, 60 international speakers and 30 booths.

Last year, the number of attendees rose to 780 — with the opportunity to hear from 90 international speakers and visit 70 booths.

This year’s event to be held in Lyon, France, from October 10-13, is on course to expand further still.

As Energy Storage Journal went to press, in excess of 1,000 were expected to attend, together with more than 130 international speakers and over 90 booths.