Margrethe Vestager – Photo © European Union 2021
(BRUSSELS) – The Commission gave its approval under EU state aid rules Wednesday to a second Important Project of Common European Interest to support research and innovation in the battery value chain.
The project, called “European Battery Innovation” was jointly prepared and notified by Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden.
The twelve Member States will provide up to 2.9 billion in funding in the coming years. The public funding is expected to unlock an additional 9 billion in private investments, i.e. more than three times the public support.
The first IPCEI in the battery value chain was approved in December 2019.
EC vice-president Margrethe Vestager said it made good sense for European governments to “come together to support industry in developing more innovative and sustainable batteries”.
She said the project was an example of “how competition policy works hand in hand with innovation and competitiveness. By enabling breakthrough innovation while ensuring that limited public resources are used to crowd in private investment and that competition distortions are minimised.”
The project will cover the entire battery value chain from extraction of raw materials, design and manufacturing of battery cells and packs, and finally the recycling and disposal in a circular economy, with a strong focus on sustainability.
It is expected to contribute to the development of a whole set of new technological breakthroughs, including different cell chemistries and novel production processes, and other innovations in the battery value chain, in addition to what will be achieved thanks to the first battery IPCEI.
The non-confidential version of the decision will be made available under the case numbers SA.55855 (Austria), SA.55840 (Belgium), SA.55844 (Croatia), SA.55846 (Finland), SA.55858 (France), SA.55831 (Germany), SA.56665 (Greece), SA.55813 (Italy), SA.55859 (Poland), SA.55819 (Slovakia), SA.55896 (Spain), and SA.55854 (Sweden) in the State Aid Register on the competition website once any confidentiality issues have been resolved.
