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- Dec 17, 2024
- 2 min read
Second week. Two countries. Countless conversations. My battery industry tour continued through Germany and the Netherlands, and hereās what I found:
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The fallout from Northvolt continues to cast a long shadow. Local players are in a bindāfully aware of the cracks in their current strategies but unable to see a clear alternative. So, whatās the plan? For most, itās doubling down on the familiar.
The lack of bold vision is worrying. If weāre to close the gap with Asiaās battery giants, ābusiness as usualā wonāt cut it.
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The Dutch mood is entirely different, for all the right reasons. Thereās an entrepreneurial energy that Germany seems to be missing right now. Using Eindhoven as a base for a week of back-to-back meetingsāwe met teams hustling hard:
š° Securing funding (like CarbonX)
š Preparing to scale up next-gen battery technologies (can't say yet who š¤«)
š Rolling out a clear national vision for their battery industry.
Strategic players in the Netherlands are focused, determined, and committed to building a small but resilient local supply chain. The conversations were refreshingāthis is exactly the kind of grit and clarity the EU battery sector needs. Iām glad to be supporting these efforts, bringing new solutions to the table.
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Days packed with 2ā3 meetings, broken up by long drives or short flights. Now Iām back in Istanbul. While Western Europe slows down for the holiday season, Iāll be here, using the quiet to plan for 2024. New year, new challenges, and new opportunities to help scale cleantech across Europe.
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What do you think will drive the EU battery industry forwardāvision, funding, or something else? Drop your thoughts in the comments, and follow me for more insights on the EU battery industry and all things cleantech!
