Beijing, 6 September 2022 (TDI): China-based leading battery manufacturer company, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL) announced an investment of 7.3 billion euros to build a new giant battery plant in Hungary.

The world’s largest manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, CATL, announced that this project is not only the largest greenfield investment in Hungary but also the largest battery-related investment in Europe.

Through the 7.3 billion euros investment, CATL aims to a 100GWh battery plant in Debrecen that will create over 9,000 new jobs. Moreover, the project will also become the largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) investment in Hungary ever.

Furthermore, it will also strengthen the role of Hungary as one of the world’s leading battery producers. China’s CATL project is the company’s second standalone facility in the region.

The first project is the Thuringia plant in Germany, which will have an annual production capacity of 14 GWh and is scheduled to begin mass production later this year.

Once approved, construction in Debrecen for the 100GWh battery plant will start later this year. The plant will be close to its key customers including Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Volkswagen, enabling it to better cope with the battery demands from the European market.

In addition, this will also help accelerate the e-mobility and energy transition in Europe.

Also read: China and Pakistan sign Letter of Intent
Remarks of the Officials:

Robin Zeng, founder and Chairman of CATL, said, “ There is no doubt that our plant in Debrecen will enable us to further sharpen our competitive edge, better respond to our European customers, and accelerate the transition to e-mobility in Europe.”

Furthermore, Zeng said, “ The greenfield project in Hungary will be a giant leap in CATL’s global expansion, and also an important step in our efforts to make an outstanding contribution to the green energy drive for humankind.”

Peter Szijjarto, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade said, “We are proud that CATL decided to execute the biggest ever greenfield investment in the history of Hungary. We have recently become one of the leading battery production sites of the world and with this huge investment we further strengthen our position.”

Markus Schafer, a member of the board of management of Mercedes-Benz Group, said, “This new state-of-the-art European CATL plant in Hungary is another milestone for the scale-up of our EV production together with our key partners.”

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR