A study from the UK’s Faraday Institution, an independent institute for electrochemical energy storage research, states European gigafactory capacity projected for 2030 will be around 1,350GWh per annum.
It said 38 plants are now expected to be open and producing cells by the turn of the decade.
Germany is a leading European location for manufacturers (with seven gigafactories open or planned) along with Hungary and France. The LG Energy Solutions plant in Poland with 115GWh capacity is the largest planned.
Britain’s role in the battery gigafactory race is less evident – the study mentions projects by Agratas and AESC, but other plans have been discarded. By 2040, around 200GWh of supply will be needed in the UK to satisfy the demand.
Nevertheless, there seems to be some gigafactory enthusiasm in the UK. “There is a growing sense of optimism that a highly productive and sustainable battery manufacturing industry can be built in the UK. By 2040, a successful industry could employ 170,000 people in EV manufacturing, 35,000 people in gigafactories and 65,000 people in the battery supply chain,” said Stephen Gifford, chief economist at Faraday.
The initiators of the new gigafactories need a new long-term strategy. “Next-generation batteries – such as solid-state, lithium-sulphur and sodium-ion technologies – offer the UK an opportunity to take a market-leading position globally in applications beyond automotive. But the UK must move quickly to exploit its competitive advantage,” said professor Martin Freer, Faraday CEO.
The study offers a detailed analysis of the UK market development and the competitive advantages of the battery technology sector, including the supply chain of critical battery materials and training of workers and engineers.
“At the cell end of battery product development the UK does not yet have a sufficiently established talent pool to satisfy demand, hence competition for the limited numbers of engineers and scientists is fierce,” said Steve Doyle of Evera Recruitment.
