Vehicles powered by electricity - Building process of a battery cell plant in Kaiserslautern comes to a halt.
A proposed battery cell factory in Kaiserslautern has hit a snag. The State Chancellery in Mainz recently disclosed, in response to an inquiry, that they learned from the German-French battery cell maker ACC about their decision on the previous Wednesday. The news had previously been reported by the "Rheinpfalz" newspaper.
The publication quoted ACC's general secretary, Matthieu Hubert, who talked about a "pause" in the project. The market for electric cars is growing at a slower pace than anticipated, and European consumers haven't been quick to switch to new electric vehicles en masse. Other obstacles, like infrastructure issues and high material costs, are also a concern. According to Hubert, "before we invest, and we're talking billions here, we need to determine which type of battery cell technology the market needs."
The decision about the future of the project in Kaiserslautern is expected by the end of this year or the start of the following one. ACC is a joint venture of the automotive companies Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis (Peugeot, Opel, Fiat) and the energy company Total.
This factory, situated at the Opel site in Kaiserslautern, is being financed with around €437 million in state funds. In September 2021, former Federal Economic Minister Peter Altmaier (CDU) and Rhineland-Palatinate Prime Minister Malu Dreyer (SPD) officially approved the funding. Earlier reports suggested that about 2,000 new jobs would be created in Kaiserslautern.
Industry expert Ferdinand Dudenhöfer views ACC's decision as a warning sign. He stated, "Politics has made customers uneasy with the customs dispute, the halt in funding for electric cars, and health concerns over combustion engines." If the building of a crucial battery factory now faces a delay, China's leading position in production will only widen. "So, jobs will be transferred from Europe to China."
