Batteries: a European success story

Welcome to a video conference on Batteries: a European success story, organised by  the “Friends of Batteries”, the European parliamentary working group for batteries

In October 2017, Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič launched the European Battery Alliance (EBA) to build a competitive, sustainable and innovative battery ecosystem in Europe, covering the entire value chain, from raw materials’ ethical sourcing and refining, battery cell production, to recycling and re-use. By doing so, the EBA is set to prevent Europe’s technological dependence and to maintain our industrial leadership, notably in automotive sector.

In the span of three years, the EBA has become Europe’s true success story. It has attracted over 500 industrial and innovation actors and secured, thanks to the cooperation with the European Investment Bank, some €100 billion in investments along the entire value chain. Several industrial projects have emerged across Member States.

In the face of the COVID-19 crisis, there is a strong determination by participants to accelerate this crucial work, including projects along the value chain. This will bolster Europe’s resilience and strategic autonomy in one of the key industrial ecosystem. The active role of and close partnership with the European Parliament will be inevitable.

The “Friends of Batteries” group aims to facilitate such cooperation. Its launch will allow discussing with the Members of the European Parliament our joint strategic action necessary to fast-track the work under the EBA and thus, contribute to Europe’ recovery. This will include establishing a new fit-for-future regulatory framework, leveraging investment, fostering cross-regional cooperation on innovative projects, stepping-up research and innovation, and adopting a strategic approach to critical raw materials to strengthen crucial future markets in a sustainable way.

We are looking forward to your participation and jointly supporting the European Union’s recovery, aimed to build a more sustainable, competitive and more resilient economy.

Date & Time
Wednesday 14 October 2020, 15:00-16:30 CET

Venue
Online, video conference via WebEX. Click here to access the event. You can also follow the event live on Facebook or Twitter.

Agenda & Speakers
15:00 – 15:05   |   Welcoming words by MEP Ismail Ertug, S&D Vice-President for Transformation, Innovation and a Strong Digital Europe
15:05 – 15:10   |   MEP Jerzy Buzek, ITRE Member, Former EP President and ITRE Chair
15:10 – 15:15   |   MEP Miapetra Kumpula-Natri, Co-chair of the EP Intergroup on “Climate Change, Biodiversity and Sustainable Development”
15:15-15:25   |   Maroš Šefčovič, Vice-President of the European Commission for Interinstitutional Relations and Foresight, in charge of the European Battery Alliance
15:25-15:35   |   Representative of the European Investment Bank (tbc)
15:35-15:45   |   Questions and answers
15:45-15:55   |   Peter Carlsson, Chief Executive Officer, Northvolt
15:55-16:05   |   Diego Pavia, Chief Executive Officer, EIT InnoEnergy
16:05-16:15   |   Julia Poliscanova, Senior Director Vehicles and E-Mobility, Transport & Environment
16:15-16:25   |   Questions and answers
16:25-16:30   |   Concluding remarks by the MEP Ismail Ertug