The European Union (EU) has allocated €1 billion in grants to boost electric vehicle (EV) battery cell manufacturing, aiming to strengthen its domestic production capabilities and reduce reliance on Chinese components like cathodes and anodes, Bloomberg reports.
This funding will come with strict sourcing criteria, favoring companies within the EU, and ensuring that intellectual property from funded projects remains in member states. Teresa Ribera, the European Commission’s vice president for a clean transition, noted that these initiatives include measures to avoid dependence on single suppliers.
Additionally, a €1.2 billion hydrogen bank auction will cap the use of Chinese electrolyzer stacks to 25% of total capacity, while another €2.4 billion earmarked for net-zero technologies will prioritize projects reducing raw material imports from non-European suppliers.
China dominates the EV supply chain, with BloombergNEF reporting its battery production in 2023 nearly matched the global demand of 950 GWh, highlighting the EU’s push for supply chain independence.
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