The United States may be lagging behind in the green energy race. China is monopolizing cobalt resources without which lithium-ion has little value currently. Moreover the European Union is offering billions of Euros of state aid for electric battery research as of October 15, 2018.
Financial Times Announces New European Union Initiative
The Financial Times reports the European Union could be left behind in the race to build mass market electric vehicles. This is because of its reliance on batteries from Asia, which puts 13 million jobs at risk.
Clearly, the industry cannot continue to prosper if it lags behind with this important new technology. Carlos Ghosn, chief executive of Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi, said at the Paris Motor Show: “We know … that the future is electric. And we simply have to catch up with this (battery) technology. You cannot develop … high-quality electric vehicles if you do not master the skills, the innovation, and research link with batteries.”
Asia Controls Roughly 80% of Planned Battery Production
When the U.S. has finally taken the decision to go green, it may find it has lagged far behind. It lacks the mineral resources and may find it a challenge to catch up. The European Union is in a similar position but is taking active steps.
The new EU Directive will allow member states to subsidize 100% of research, “as long as this involves some cross-border projects.” The EU’s Horizon 2020 research fund has set aside €200m for battery projects. Moreover €800m is available to finance building energy storage demonstration facilities. Member states can also tap into €22bn regional funding.
We believe it is time for North America to join the scramble for storage battery dominance. “There is a tide in the affairs of people best taken at the flood” (William Shakespeare)
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Preview Image: Hybrid Gas – Energy Storage
