Transformation of the birthplace of European 18650 lithium ion battery cell technology

　　According to the company shipment rankings shown in the latest data, six of the top ten power battery companies in the world in 2018 are from China, and the other four are from Japan and South Korea. Now, as the birthplace of the earliest 18650 lithium ion battery cell technology, Europe hopes to get rid of its backwardness and is catching up. The global 18650 lithium ion battery cell industry led by China, Japan and South Korea may change.

　　3.2 billion euros for battery production and R&D

　　Recently, the European Union approved a 3.2 billion euro battery production and R&D assistance project. Opel, BMW, PSA, and the well-known company BASF have all participated in the project.

　　It is reported that this public funding will be used to research the mining and processing of raw materials, the production of advanced chemical materials, the design of battery cells and modules and how to integrate them into systems, and finally, methods for recycling or reusing old batteries. The EU hopes to achieve its goal of a zero-carbon economy by 2050 by investing in battery technology research and development.

　　Prior to this, Europe's most critical lithium-sulfur battery research project supported by the EU's "Horizon 2020" framework plan - the Lithium-Sulfur Battery Project for Electric Vehicles (ALISE) has now developed lithium-sulfur batteries with an energy density of over 310 Wh/kg. Battery. This type of battery is lighter, has high energy density, and does not require critical raw materials.

　　Japanese and Korean companies "occupy" Europe

　　Although Europe has not yet established its own battery supply chain, some foreign countries have invested and built factories in Europe in order to occupy the European market in advance.

　　South Korea's three major battery companies, SKI, LG Chem, and Samsung SDI, have already established battery production bases in Europe and plan to increase local production of electric vehicle batteries.

　　On December 5, South Korea's SKI announced that its new lithium-ion battery factory for pure electric vehicles in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province has been completed. The factory has an investment of 820 billion won and can produce batteries for 150,000 vehicles each year. It will operate the factory in a joint venture with BAIC Group and others. SKI also plans to build a second factory after the first factory in Hungary is completed by the end of the year.

　　LG, which has previously established an electric vehicle battery factory in Poland, is currently considering establishing a second battery factory in Europe in addition to jointly investing US$2.3 billion with General Motors to establish a battery production company.

　　In addition, the industry revealed that Samsung SDI plans to build a second electric vehicle battery factory in Hungary, located near the first factory.

　　European strategies of Chinese companies

　　The frequent deployment of Japan and South Korea in Europe has put Chinese battery companies under tremendous pressure. Domestic power battery giants such as CATL and BYD have also begun their "European tour."

　　In July 2018, CATL signed an agreement with the Thuringia state government in Germany to invest 240 million euros to establish a battery production base and intelligent manufacturing technology research and development center in Erfurt. The base will be constructed in two phases and engage in the research, development and production of lithium-ion batteries. It is planned to be put into production in 2021. This is the first overseas factory in the CATL era.

　　On October 18 this year, CATL’s Thuringia battery factory officially started construction. According to the plan, CATL's Thuringia battery factory will be constructed in two phases and is scheduled to be put into production in 2021. The construction area is 230,000 square meters, and the production line includes battery cells and module products. It is expected to achieve an annual battery production capacity of 14GWh by 2022.

　　Compared with the CATL era, BYD entered the European market earlier. As early as 1998, it established its European headquarters in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. In 2013, BYD received an order for 35 pure electric buses from Amsterdam Airport in the Netherlands.

　　Recently, BYD won the bid for 259 pure electric buses in the Netherlands, which is the largest single order in the European pure electric bus market so far. It is understood that in the field of pure electric buses in Europe, BYD occupies 20% of the market share, ranking first.

　　Will Europe build a sustainable battery industry chain?

　　Seeing that China, Japan and South Korea have achieved such good results in the battery market, Europe is anxious and wants to catch up with them as soon as possible.

　　In 2018, with the support of the European Commission, European countries began to discuss the establishment of a viable industrial battery production alliance to get rid of dependence on power battery companies such as China, Japan, and South Korea. The German government has even proposed a plan to invest 2 billion euros in building a power battery factory in Braunschweig, and has received support from relevant car companies and consortiums.

　　In March this year, Volkswagen announced the establishment of the European Battery Alliance (EBU) in partnership with Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt, which aims to fund research, development and industrial applications of battery technology. Volkswagen said that the joint research activities of the European Battery Alliance will cover the entire value chain from raw materials, battery technology to battery recycling, with the primary goal of accumulating a wider range of battery production technologies.

　　In September, Europe's France, Poland, Italy, Finland, Belgium, Sweden, Slovakia, Spain and Germany decided to establish Europe's second battery industry alliance. About 30 companies including Germany's BMW and BASF are members of Europe's second battery industry alliance.

　　Such frequent actions fully demonstrate Europe’s determination to revive the battery industry. A group of government officials led by European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic and manufacturers, development banks and commercial lenders plan to invest more than 100 billion euros to create a lithium-ion battery supply chain.

　　James Frith, energy storage analyst at Bloomberg NEF, said: Europe is likely to control 11% of the world's battery manufacturing capacity by 2025 (currently 4%). This means that Europe will take away part of China's market share and pose a direct challenge to the United States.

　　The European Commission predicts that by 2025, the total size of the battery market may reach 250 billion euros; by then, at least 100 billion euros of battery products will come from European battery factories or supply chains.

　　More battery products means more battery materials are needed. Fitch forecasts that, in a bullish scenario, the EU will lead average demand for cobalt, nickel and lithium ahead of China and the United States by 2028. This is also a huge challenge for the European battery industry chain, because it must consider whether supply can keep up with the growth in demand.

　　Hopefully, as German Federal Economics Minister Peter Altmaier said in a statement: "We want to create the most innovative and sustainable batteries in Germany and Europe, thereby safeguarding added value and jobs in Europe."

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