It has been relatively recently that we have heard of the United States IRA law. This is a measure that the country has launched to fight inflation, with succulent incentives at the industry level, especially when it comes to electricity and its batteries. This means that many companies that had little in Europe now look to the other side of the pond to locate their new facilities. There is talk that about 50 battery factories are at risk of displacement if no action is taken.
This data is more tragic if it is spoken in percentages of productive capacity, since 68% of the total (1.2 TWh) is at risk. It is said soon, but it is the amount of batteries that could power 18 million electric cars. That also affects SpainHere, 79% of production is in danger and two of the factories that could be of most interest at an industrial level. Luckily the Volkswagen from Sagunto is not at high risk levels, according to the T&E report it is unlikely that it will move to the United States.
On the other hand, the ones that worry the most are those of Envision in Navalmoral de la Mata (Extremadura) or that of Basquevolt in Vitoria (Basque Country). The first is projected to have a capacity of 30 GWh and has a medium risk as it has not yet obtained aid from PERTE VEC. Something similar happens with Basquevolt, since its funding is oriented towards research projects and it seems insufficient for production. The risk increases in other projects without fixed location such as that of Inobat in the province of Valladolid.
The fact is that the European Union is in a delicate situation and many companies could opt for China or the United States and its IRA law for the production of lithium-ion batteries. The investment fee in this field has dropped from 41% in 2021 to 2% in 2022 on our continent, while in other places it continues to increase. In this way, emphasis is being placed on Europe acting with financial aid to retain these projects. It takes a green industrial policy focused on batteries that benefits all countries.
The next move is that the European Comission will publish a law on the industry with net zero emissions on March 14. It is expected to be a response to the American IRA with tax breaks and subsidies to increase the manufacture of batteries. Hopefully it will be enough to retain that much-needed capital in one of the most important industries on the continent.
Source: Transport&Environment
