Factbox: Companies invest in EV battery factories in Europe

Pininfarina SpA

22/11/2024 14:13

(Adds detail throughout)
       Nov 22 (Reuters) - Northvolt, the Swedish maker of
battery cells for electric vehicles, on Thursday filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S., in a blow to
European hopes of building a home-grown EV battery industry to
compete with China.
    Europe has been seeking to attract EV battery makers to
build factories in the region - home to carmakers such as
Volkswagen and Stellantis - as it tries to cut dependency on
Asia and win a green subsidies race with the United States.
    Production plans, however, have faced bureaucratic hurdles,
production problems and slower EV demand than expected. 
    In 2024, Europe's battery pipeline capacity out to 2030 has
fallen by 176 gigawatt-hours, according to data firm Benchmark
Minerals. That's equivalent to almost all the current installed
capacity in Europe, Reuters calculations show.    
    Below is an overview, including by country listing, of those
operating and those planned:
    
            
    OPERATING
    Britain
    * SUNDERLAND: A plant by Nissan  7201.T -backed AESC,
operational since 2012, has a production capacity of 1.8 GWh. 
    
    Czech Republic
    * HORNI SUCHA: Czech battery maker Magna Energy Storage
(MES) targets output of 15 GWh at a plant worth 1.4 billion
Czech crowns ($63 million). It opened in September 2020 with
initial capacity of 200 MWh.
    
    France
    * DOUVRIN: The Automotive Cells Company (ACC) plant was
inaugurated in May 2023 with operations starting in the second
half of the year.
    ACC is a JV of Stellantis  STLAM.MI   STLAM.PA , Mercedes
Benz  MBGn.DE  and TotalEnergies  TTEF.PA .
    In March, ACC and Bouygues'  BOUY.PA  energy arm Equans
signed a deal to double the plant's capacity of 13 GWh by 2026.
    * QUIMPER: Bolloré Group  BOLL.PA -owned Blue Solutions'
factory in Ergue-Gaberic was inaugurated in 2013. The company's
website says its two factories in France and Canada have
combined capacity of 1.5 GWh. It was not clear how much of this
was in France.
    
    Germany
    * GRUENHEIDE: Tesla  TSLA.O  is seeking approval from the
German government to double the capacity of its 5 billion euro 
($5.2 billion) battery plant near Berlin from its current 50
GWh.
    * ERFURT: China's CATL  300750.SZ  is ramping up capacity of
its plant to 14 GWh from 8 GWh.
    * LUDWIGSFELDE: Microvast's  MVST.O  plant has a capacity of
1.5 GWh and targets up to 6 GWh.
    
    Hungary
    * GOED: Samsung's 1.2 billion euro factory with 30 GWh
capacity started production in 2018.    
    
    Italy
    * TEVEROLA: Seri Industrial's  SERK.MI  FAAM started
operations at its 570 million euro plant in 2024, with an
initial installed capacity of 0.35 GWh and a targeted capacity
of 8 GWh. 
    
    Norway
    * ARENDAL: Battery start-up Morrow opened its 470 million
euro plant in August 2024 with a targeted capacity of 32 GWh.
However, its CEO Lars Christian Bacher told Reuters it would
take years before it would qualify for selling batteries to an
automotive company.
    
    Poland
    * WROCLAW: LG Energy Solution's  051910.KS  plant started
production in 2017 with a capacity of 100,000 batteries and a
target of 115 GWh by 2025.
    
    Serbia
    * SUBOTICA: ElevenES opened its LFP battery cell facility in
April 2024 aiming for output of 48 GWh by 2027. The planned
investment is 1 billion euros.
    
    Sweden
    * SKELLEFTEA: Northvolt's factory started production in late
2021. The group in September 2024 suspended plans to expand the
plant due to production problems, sluggish demand and
competition from China, and now only makes battery cells.
    It has an installed capacity of 16 GWh, but is not operating
at that level. The company has missed some in-house targets and
has curtailed production at the plant, Reuters reported on Nov.
18.
    
    PLANNED
    Belgium
    * SENEFFE-MANAGE: Avesta Battery and Energy Engineering
expects its 40 million euro plant to be fully operational by
2030, with a capacity of 3 GWh.
    
    Britain
    * SOMERSET: India's Tata Group  TAMO.NS  will build a 4
billion pound ($5.01 billion) gigafactory to supply its Jaguar
Land Rover factories. The plant will have initial output of 40
GWh, with production starting in 2026.
    
    Europe
    * Stellantis  STLAM.MI  aims to build a plant to produce
lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries in Europe as part of a
planned joint venture with Chinese EV battery giant CATL.
    
    Finland
    * KOTKA: Finnish Minerals Group has signed a deal with a
potential partner for a cell production plant. After an
environmental impact assessment for the facility was completed
in October, the firm said it expects production to start in
2026.
    
    France
    * DOUAI: China's Envision is investing up to 2 billion euros
in an AESC gigafactory near the "Renault ElectriCity" EV hub.
The plant, for which the group plans initial capacity of 9 GWh,
is set to start operations in 2026.  
    * DUNKIRK: Taiwan's ProLogium is working to secure
government subsidies for a 5.2 billion euro factory. Production
is scheduled to begin in 2026, with targeted capacity of 48 GWh.
    * DUNKIRK: French start-up Verkor said in May it had secured
more than 1.3 billion euros in financing for a factory in
Dunkirk it is building with targeted capacity of 12 GWh. Renault
 RENA.PA  will be its biggest client.
    * HAUTS-DE-FRANCE: Stellantis-backed Tiamat Energy plans to
raise 150 million euros to build a 5 GWh gigafactory for
sodium-ion battery cells by 2029.

    Germany
    * HEIDE: In March, Northvolt began building its plant after
getting 902 million euros in German government subsidies. It
plans to invest 3 billion-5 billion euros in the plant.
    * SALZGITTER: Volkswagen  VOWG_p.DE  plans to build six
plants in Europe totaling 240 GWh by 2030. Production at the
first plant will start in 2025 with targeted capacity of 20 GWh.
    
    Hungary
    * DEBRECEN: CATL is building a 7.3 billion euro plant
targeting capacity of 100 GWh. It started construction in 2022
and aims to start production in two to three years.     
    * DEBRECEN: China's EVE Power will spend 1 billion euros to
build a 28 GWh plant, Hungary's foreign minister said in May
2023.    
    
    Norway
    * TRONDHEIM: Elinor invested 10 billion Norwegian crowns
($935 million) in a plant set to start operations by 2026 and
with capacity of about 40 GWh by 2030. The firm entered a
partnership with China's Morlus Technology in August to invest
in battery production.
    
    Portugal
    * SINES: China's CALB expects its factory to start operating
by end-2025 at 15 GWh, rising to 45 GWh in 2028. 
    
    Serbia
    * CUPRIJA: Slovak startup InoBat plans to build a
gigafactory with government funding of 419 million euros. It
will be operational by 2025, with an initial capacity of 4 GWh
and a target of 32 GWh. 
    
    Slovakia
    * SURANY: Inobat and China's Gotion High Tech  002074.SZ 
plans to build an EV battery factory in Europe by 2026 with
initial output of 20 GWh.
    
    Spain
    * BASQUE COUNTRY: BASQUEVOLT plans to invest more than 700
million euros in a plant targeting capacity of 10 GWh by 2027.
    * NAVALMORAL DE LA MATA: Spain signed a deal with Envision
to build a 2.5 billion euro plant with capacity of 30 GWh.
    * SAGUNTO: Volkswagen and partners said in 2022 they would
invest 10 billion euros in a 40 GWh plant, with production
starting by 2026.
    * VALLADOLID: InoBat signed a deal with the Spanish
government to set up a 32 GWh factory worth 3 billion euros.
    
    Switzerland
    * FRAUENFELD: Swiss Clean Battery (SCB) expects its plant
worth 775 million Swiss francs ($880 million) to be fully
operational by 2030, with a target of 7.6 GWh.
    
    CANCELLED, POSTPONED OR AWAITING PERMITS
    * In June, ACC paused work on factories in Germany and Italy
as it switches to lower-cost batteries amid slowing demand for
EVs. It had planned to spend over 7 billion euros on three
gigafactories in Europe with 40 GWh capacity each by 2030.
    
    Britain
    * COVENTRY: The West Midlands Gigafactory public-private
joint venture said in October 2023 it was in advanced talks with
several Asian battery makers about investment at the site,
following Coventry's approval for a potential plant. The JV said
in October it received a 14.5-million-pound funding package to
start planning infrastructure works.
    * SUNDERLAND: Envision is planning to build a factory near
Nissan's  7201.T  plant, with production capacity of 12 GWh. The
project is awaiting regulatory approval. 
    
    Finland
    * China's Svolt shortlisted Finland among other countries as
a potential location for a battery cell factory with a capacity
of about 50 GWh, but said in October it had abandoned plans for
production in Europe. 
    
    Germany
    * TUBINGEN: Porsche  PSHG_p.DE  said in July 2023 it was
seeking investors to launch its Cellforce 100 MWh plant, but
provided no further communication about the project.
    
    Italy
    * SCARMAGNO, ROMANO CANAVESE: Pininfarina  PNNI.MI -backed
Italvolt indefinitely postponed plans for a 3.5 billion euro
plant, several media reported. Reuters was not able to confirm
this.
        
    Norway  
    * MO I RANA: FREYR abandoned a plan to build a $1.7 billion
plant, to focus its production on North America. 
    
    Sweden
    * BORLANGE: Northvolt in September 2024 cancelled plans for
what was meant to be a battery cell factory. 
    * GOTHENBURG: Northvolt planned on a plant set to start
production by 2026, with a targeted capacity of 50 GWh. 
    Volvo Cars  VOLCARb.ST  is seeking to take over Northvolt's
stake in their NOVO JV, but will need a new partner to keep
plans for a gigafactory on track, the Chinese-owned automaker
said in September.
        ($1 = 0.9598 euros)
    ($1 = 0.7987 pounds)

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FACTBOX-What's in the EU's green industrial plan?    
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N35N6NN
Europe's downsized gigafactory network    https://reut.rs/4fpIpvZ
Europe's downsized gigafactory network    https://reut.rs/4eyoSbB
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
 (Compiled by Alessandro Parodi, Tiago Brandao and Matteo
Allievi; editing by Milla Nissi, Jan Harvey and Jason Neely)
 ((Alessandro.Parodi@thomsonreuters.com;))