In this paper, AVERE calls on European decision-makers to rapidly introduce a ‘Battery Materials Bank’ to strengthen the EU’s domestic battery and materials value chain. The scope of this new Bank should cover primarily the processing and refining of critical raw materials, and the manufacturing and recycling of batteries.
The development of a strong battery value chain and the production of EU-made batteries have become a strategic imperative for the EU to enable its clean energy transition. In this paper, AVERE calls on European decision-makers to rapidly introduce a ‘Battery Materials Bank’ to strengthen the EU’s domestic battery and materials value chain. The scope of this new Bank should cover primarily the processing and refining of critical raw materials, and the manufacturing and recycling of batteries. Funding would be based on well-designed auction mechanisms, providing payments based only on certified and verified output production, and supporting mature production processes that still encounter profitability issues. This auctioning system would provide a more transparent and predictable business framework conditions for investors, thereby attracting more companies to Europe. The new bank should become operational as soon as possible in the early 2020’s, in line with the EU’s 2035 internal combustion engine (ICE) phase out objective.
In the longer-term, this Battery Materials Bank should be accompanied with a ‘European Critical Raw Materials Fund’. This new fund would have the same scope as the Battery Materials Bank but would be based on existing EU financial framework and tools, notably the EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). It should be discussed separately in the context of the MFF revision for the period 2028-2034, it should ensure complementarity with national funds and directly contribute to the EU’s green industrialisation process and autonomy. The Fund would be financed through additional EU-pooled money and it would be based on existing tools and governance frameworks mentioned above. The scope of the rules for each funding stream will need to be made as clear as possible, making sure there is no double funding of the same cost items.
Overall, whereas the Bank would be instrumental in changing the current financing paradigm in Europe to start strengthening the domestic raw materials and battery value chain, the Fund would have a longer term criticality, as it would consolidate the EU’s industrial competitiveness to make sure the transition to e-mobility fully takes shape in the next years and decades.
Read more in our position paper below!