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Industry: France’s first electric battery factory struggles to take off
Industry: France’s first electric battery factory struggles to take off
(France 2)
The establishment of the electric battery market in Europe is struggling. The factory opened in Pas-de-Calais still throws away a large part of its production.
Of the 2,000 electric car batteries expected daily at the Pas-de-Calais manufacturing plant, only 100 come out each day. Many anomalies are still detected daily. “At the slightest defect, the product is thrown away”explains Cédric Brun, CGT delegate for the North in charge of industrial issues. According to him, “half” of the production goes into the trash, because “non-compliant”.
To get this plant off the ground, Stellantis and Mercedes were supported by TotalEnergies for this project which received more than a billion euros in subsidies. Despite these investments, management admits that the technology has not yet been mastered: “It’s chemistry, so it’s difficult to perfect.”underlines Yann Vincent, general director of Automotive Cells Company (ACC).
In the midst of doubt, the group has just stopped the creation of its factories in Italy and Germany. Today, one in ten electric cars sold in Europe is Chinese, a figure that could double next year.