As regards financial support for European battery cell manufacturing at scale, the Commission had, in cooperation with the EIB, envisaged creating a dedicated batteries funding and financing portal to facilitate stakeholder access to appropriate financial support and assist in the blending of financial instruments.
Detecting anomalies present in battery components, battery cells, and ESS and EV modules is now easier than ever. With Lithium-ion battery defect recognition, battery manufacturers and users can inspect both known sources of defects as well as gain insights into new areas of possible concern.
33 Crucially, the Commission does not monitor EU production of battery cells sufficiently. Eurostat currently reports on quantities (units) of batteries produced44 regardless of their energy capacity in Watt-hours, which is the essential market indicator.
In 2018, as part of the EU’s industrial policy, the Commission designated batteries as a strategic imperative for the EU’s clean energy transition, and launched an action plan aimed at making Europe a global leader in sustainable battery production and use.
84 Overall, we conclude that the Commission’s promotion of an EU industrial policy on batteries has been effective, despite shortcomings on monitoring, coordination and targeting, as well as the fact that access to raw materials remains a major strategic challenge for the EU’s battery value chain.
Multiple funding streams support new battery research and manufacturing projects. During the 2014-2020 period, the EU budget provided at least €1.7 billion in grants and loan guarantees, which add to state aid of up to €6 billion between 2019 and 2021.