Commission gathers Industry and Member States to drive battery production in the EU

On Wednesday 11 October, the European Commission will host a high level meeting on battery development and production in Europe. Representatives of the European industry, Member States and financial institutions will participate. Following President Juncker‘s SOTEUspeech where he presented a new Industrial Policy Strategy that “will help our industries stay or become the world leader in innovation, digitisation and decarbonisation“, this initiative aims at identifying and exploring opportunities to complete the gaps in the battery value chain in Europe and discuss actions needed for the EU to remain competitive. Amongst a wide panel of actions, the new industrial policy puts forward new proposals for clean, competitive and connected mobility, including tightened CO2 emissions standards for cars and vans, an Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Action Plan to support the deployment of charging infrastructure, and actions to foster autonomous driving. Vice-President for Energy Union Maroš Šefčovic who will host themeeting, said: “Batteries represent a key enabling technology in the context of the Energy Union. Their development and production play a strategic role in the ongoing transition to clean mobility and clean energy systems. Its potential should not be left untapped in the EU and we all need to pull in the same direction. Ultimately, it is about making the European industry stronger and more competitive, about creating jobs based on cutting edge technologies, and about leading the fight against climate change.” The Commission has supported the development of batteries as a key enabling technology for achieving EU climate and energy goals. It’s most recent Communication “Europe on the Move” sets out an agenda for a transition to clean, competitive, and connected mobility in Europe. Therein batteries have been identified as one of the flagship initiatives under the Energy Union Strategy. Also the Industrial Policy Strategy highlights the strategic importance of investments in batteries and the need to kick-start industry-led initiatives for a full battery value chain in the EU. Finally, building on Europe’s leadership in a low-carbon and circular economy, this helps the EU to implement its Paris Agreement commitments. The Commission is ready to step up its work with Member States and stakeholders to support industry-led initiatives. A press point with Vice-President Šefčovič on the outcome of the meeting will take place in the Berlaymont VIP corner at 16:00 CET, Europe by Satellite will transmit live.