With electric vehicle (EV) sales surging across Europe, Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt announced April 13 its intent, together with Lisbon-based multinational energy conglomerate Galp Energia, to construct a massive lithium conversion plant on Portugal's southern coast.
Chinese battery manufacturer CALB has confirmed its plans to build a production facility for lithium-ion batteries in Portugal. The factory with an annual capacity of 15 gigawatt-hours is intended to start production in 2028. According CALB, the investment amounts to two billion euros.
What's going on with a lithium-ion cell factory in Portugal?
To be more specific, the deal was signed with Global Parques, a subsidiary of the Agência para o Investimento e Comércio Externo de Portugal (Portuguese Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade, or AICEP). According to Agência Lusa, the plan is to build the lithium-ion cell factory in Sines, Setúbal.
Our factory will not only create new jobs, but will also place Portugal at the forefront of the production of batteries for electric vehicles in Europe,” said Liu Jingyu, chairman of the Board of Directors of CALB. Once operational, the plant will have a production capacity of 15 GWh of energy storage.
Why should Portugal invest in a battery factory?
“Our factory will not only create new jobs but will also place Portugal at the forefront of the production of batteries for electric vehicles in Europe,” he highlights. According to CALB, “this strategic investment” aims to “reinforce its presence in the European market for electric vehicles (EV) and energy storage systems (BESS)”.
Alongside Spain, Portugal is leveraging its abundant lithium deposits to build a fully integrated supply chain, covering: Strengthening Europe's battery ecosystem by reducing reliance on Chinese manufacturers will enhance supply chain security and create a more resilient local production network for lithium-ion batteries.
The project to build a lithium battery factory for cars owned by the Chinese company CALB in Sines, with 15 GWh (Gigawatts/hour) of energy storage, is launched...