The German Government has announced its intention to invest more than 1.5 million euros in research and battery production in the coming years to support the transformation of its national industry, which has been betting on electrification decisively in recent times.
The German industry’s main actors will participate in this initiative, whose first endowment of 300 million euros went to the battery company Varta on June 30. “The establishment of innovative and sustainable cell production is a priority for us in Germany,” said Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Peter Altmaier.
“It is necessary to remain competitive during the energy and transport transition, create new jobs, and ensure prosperity. Today we have taken a big step towards large-scale domestic production of automotive and industrial batteries.” Four other companies with similar projects in Germany will receive grants: BASF, BMW, Opel, and Umicore.
The European Battery Alliance believes that the European battery market could reach 250 billion euros by the middle of the decade. Also, it should not be forgotten that batteries currently represent around 40% of the value of electric cars, according to the German Ministry of Economic calculations.
The projects subscribed to the German Government’s aid program should start manufacturing batteries in 2022, entering production on an industrial scale no later than the middle of the decade. Germany estimates that by 2030 it will have between 7 and 10 million electric vehicles on its roads, so betting on its battery industry will be vital to ensure its competitiveness.