European gigafactories need cheap, green energy

Development of European gigafactories will increase with support from cheap, sustainable energy access and a cost-saving integrated supply chain, speakers told Battery Show Europe in Stuttgart on 7-9 May.

"Achieving cost targets is the most important factor" for a project's success, which means optimising energy consumption or building in a region with low-cost electricity supply, Swedish commercial investment and development hub Node Pole's chief executive, Patrik Ohlund, said.

Production of a 1 kWh lithium-ion battery requires 60-80kW of energy, but through energy optimisation the aim is to reduce this to 50kW, he said.

A factor that influenced battery manufacturer Northvolt's choice of Sweden for its large-scale 32 GWh/yr Ett battery plant, was access to inexpensive, renewable power, director Martin Anderlind said. Sweden produces low carbon electricity from nuclear and hydro power plants.

As well as cheap energy, easy access to raw materials would support competition in Europe. "The EU is pushing to have a fully integrated domestic supply chain, from manufacturing EVs [electric vehicles], all the way back to producing raw materials," Infinity Lithium executive director Vincent Ledoux Pedailles said.

With the uptake of EVs in Europe accelerating and the EU attempting to reduce dependency on Asia-Pacific for battery cell production, the expected regional demand growth offers opportunities for upcoming European gigafactory projects.

Estimates show that battery cell demand is expected to reach 250-300 GWh/yr in the next decade, with a supply shortfall of about 120 GWh/yr — equivalent to 10 gigafactories.

EV battery manufacturers are expected to add over 140 GWh/yr of global capacity by 2021, driving increased demand for metals such as cobalt, lithium, silicon and nickel.