October 10, 2025: EU leaders have been urged to push ahead with urgent action to support European battery manufacturers — after being warned the industry faced costs that are some 20% higher that Asian competitors.
The call, came on September 30 at what was termed a high-level ministerial meeting of the European Battery Alliance (EBA) and the European Solar Industry Alliance in Brussels, including representatives of EU member states, the European Commission and the European Investment Bank.
Just days earlier, the EU announced a fresh €1.8 billion ($2.2 billion) bid to protect the bloc’s nascent EV battery industry from being overrun by global competitors.
However, battery industry leaders say the bloc needs to speed up and strengthen development of batteries and solar PV in the face of Asian subsidies and domestic energy costs.
The EBA said batteries represent 30%-40% of the value of an electric vehicle, making them a core driver for Europe’s automotive sector and the millions of jobs it sustains.
Without robust domestic battery production, Europe risks depending on foreign suppliers, which could undermine its industrial resilience and economic sovereignty.
Diego Pavia, CEO of European Commission-backed clean tech developer InnoEnergy told the September 30 meeting ‘homegrown’ projects could meet a significant share of EU demand for EV batteries by 2030, but decisive, coordinated action was needed.
Urgent policies include introducing “binding resilience and local content requirements to give investors confidence that European-made products will be prioritised”.
EU leaders must ensure a level playing field with Asian competitors, addressing unfair practices and overcapacity while enabling partnerships that support Europe’s strategic interests, Pavia said.
Brussels-based thinktank Bruegel warned last July that Europe’s superficial love-hate relationship with Chinese battery tech and EV investors risked derailing the bloc’s sustainability, economic and security objectives, and potentially harm trade with the US.
