China's CALB says European battery makers could source 70% of inputs locally by 2026

CALB

07/09/2023 09:36

By Zhang Yan
       MUNICH, Sept 7 (Reuters) - European battery makers may
be able to source at least 70% of the key materials they need
locally by 2026, a senior manager at Chinese battery maker CALB
Group said, as suppliers ramp up investments in the region.
    CALB  3931.HK  has been localising its supply chains by
offering technical support to local firms and encouraging
Chinese suppliers to set up plants in Europe, Wu Tao, general
manager of CALB's marketing division, told Reuters.
    "We do feel it's necessary to localise supplies of materials
as much as possible," Wu said in an interview on the sidelines
of the Munich auto show IAA Mobility. 
    "As a new energy company, it makes no sense for us to ship
them with vessels burning diesel all the way from China."
    However, around 5% to 10% of the materials would still need
to be imported from China due to high costs and a lack of
technological capabilities locally, he added.
    Wu's comments came as Chinese battery makers seek growth in
Europe to supply to European automakers, as demand at home is
slowing. CALB is currently building a plant in Portugal with a
planned capacity of 15 gigawatt hours annually.
    Its biggest competitor CATL  300750.SZ  has been producing
battery cells and modules in a plant in Germany, and is building
another site in Hungary.
    Authorities in Europe have also been urging the development
of local supply chains with low-carbon and sustainability
requirements to speed up adoption of electric vehicles in the
region.
    At the World New Energy Vehicle Congress (WNEVC) in Munich,
China's EV industry leaders including policy adviser and 'father
of EVs' Wan Gan, the heads of carmakers BYD  002593.SZ  and Nio
 9866.HK  and battery maker CATL called for stronger global
cooperation and policy standardisation to scale up EV adoption.
    Founded in 2015, CALB, which supplies automakers including
Xpeng  9868.HK  and Nio, was the third largest battery maker
after CATL and BYD in terms of sales in the first seven months
of 2023.

 (Reporting by Zhang Yan in Munich; Editing by Christoph Steitz
and Jan Harvey)
 ((Zoey.Zhang@thomsonreuters.com;))