The world’s biggest maker of electric-vehicle batteries, China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology (Catl), is considering a third factory in Europe, the company’s president in the region said.
“We are thinking about this, but currently there is no clear decision or activity,” Matthias Zentgraf told Bloomberg News, saying internal discussions are already under way.
The Ningde, Fujian-based company last month announced plans to build a second European EV battery plant in Hungary, investing €7.3 billion ($7.2bn) in partnership with Mercedes-Benz Group.
The facility has a planned output of 100 gigawatt hours and will also supply Volkswagen, BMW and Stellantis. Catl expects it to be ready within five years.
“We will not build a third plant if there is no prospect for the demand volume,” Mr Zentgraf said in a video call from the IAA Transport conference in Hanover, Germany.
Catl has maintained a lead over rivals, including the world’s second-biggest cell producer LG Energy Solution.
The company rebounded from its sharpest ever drop in quarterly earnings at the start of 2022, with first-half net income rising 82 per cent from a year earlier and revenue jumping 156 per cent.
It has established several production bases in China and subsidiaries in the US, Japan and Europe and is spending 27bn yuan ($3.8bn) on two battery projects in China’s Shandong and Fujian provinces.
Mr Zentgraf declined to comment on whether Catl would supply batteries to Tesla’s new factory in Berlin.
Catl is due to start producing batteries at its first European plant in the central German city of Erfurt later this year.
One challenge is the continent’s energy crisis and rising gas prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. More than half of Germany’s gas imports came from Russia before the war.
“We are affected with the shortage of natural gas, which is very important for the cell production process because we need a lot of energy,” Mr Zentgraf said. Gas accounts for about half of the German plant’s energy needs.
“We are working on substitutions for this intensively,” added Mr Zentgraf, who joined Catl in 2015.
“We already have a very, very promising idea to replace natural gas to buy renewables.”
Contingency plans will enable the plant to stay operational through winter if gas supplies fall short or prices are too high, he said.
Mr Zentgraf called for the EU to offer more flexible state aid to help localise and expand the EV-battery supply chain and complement billions of dollars of investment from battery makers.
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Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ibrahim's play list
Completed an electrical diploma at the Adnoc Technical Institute
Works as a public relations officer with Adnoc
Apart from the piano, he plays the accordion, oud and guitar
His favourite composer is Johann Sebastian Bach
Also enjoys listening to Mozart
Likes all genres of music including Arabic music and jazz
Enjoys rock groups Scorpions and Metallica
Other musicians he likes are Syrian-American pianist Malek Jandali and Lebanese oud player Rabih Abou Khalil
The five pillars of Islam
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias
Universal Championship Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
WWE World Heavyweight ChampionshipAJ Styles (champion) v Shinsuke Nakamura
Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
United States Championship Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal
SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos
Raw Tag Team Championship (currently vacant) Cesaro and Sheamus v Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt
Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho
Singles match John Cena v Triple H
Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v tba
Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence".
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- The Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
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Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
Kat Wightman's tips on how to create zones in large spaces
- Area carpets or rugs are the easiest way to segregate spaces while also unifying them.
- Lighting can help define areas. Try pendant lighting over dining tables, and side and floor lamps in living areas.
- Keep the colour palette the same in a room, but combine different tones and textures in different zone. A common accent colour dotted throughout the space brings it together.
- Don’t be afraid to use furniture to break up the space. For example, if you have a sofa placed in the middle of the room, a console unit behind it will give good punctuation.
- Use a considered collection of prints and artworks that work together to form a cohesive journey.
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Neil Thomson – THE BIO
Family: I am happily married to my wife Liz and we have two children together.
Favourite music: Rock music. I started at a young age due to my father’s influence. He played in an Indian rock band The Flintstones who were once asked by Apple Records to fly over to England to perform there.
Favourite book: I constantly find myself reading The Bible.
Favourite film: The Greatest Showman.
Favourite holiday destination: I love visiting Melbourne as I have family there and it’s a wonderful place. New York at Christmas is also magical.
Favourite food: I went to boarding school so I like any cuisine really.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
More coverage from the Future Forum
Honeymoonish
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Background: Chemical Weapons
