Solar Magazine – Toine Manders: ‘The Netherlands is missing the boat for batteries, government must take action’
Europe is building its own industry. Member States are allowed to engage in industrial policy in this context, and money is available for that. Toine Manders: ‘The Netherlands is missing that boat, the government must take action.’
miss that boat, the government must act.’
This time, the editors of Solar Magazine speak in ‘Politics Today’ with Toine Manders, who has now passed the retirement age. He is not thinking about retiring from his work as MEP and Elderly Envoy for the CDA for the time being. He is a passionate man and active in the Social Affairs and Employment, Legal Affairs and Internal Market and Consumer Protection committees. For the latter, he is, among other things, rapporteur for the new European Batteries Regulation. According to Manders, this law has major consequences for companies, but also new opportunities for the emergence of a European battery industry.
Uyghurs
“There is a purposeful shift in the European Union (EU) in terms of energy transition,” said Manders. “The Green Deal has already raised the bar, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine turned everything upside down. The importance of energy independence is felt by everyone in advance. This can be achieved in part by switching to a renewable energy system. In doing so, we must create our own industry that makes the same products, and serving a European market is therefore a must. I have been saying for some time that Europe is an enemy of itself in this regard. Our values and standards do not pass on to others. For example, China was able to take over the PV industry and we are now buying massively Chinese solar panels based on technology that we have applied, which are often also made by Uyghurs under appalling conditions. I see the new European Batteries Regulation as an instrument to prevent us from falling into the same pitfall when it comes to batteries.’
Trialogen
The new European Batteries include a wide range of new and tightened product and recycling requirements. The proposal was adopted by the European Parliament on March 22 this year. be aligned with the vision of the Council of Ministers and the European Commission during trilogues with a view to reaching final legislation perhaps as late as 2022. Many of the texts and lines come from Manders, he indicates. This applies, for example, to the requirement that batteries in electric cars will not be suitable for charging, but also for supplying electricity to buildings.
reserve tank
‘This way we can add some flexibility to our green energy system of the future’, says Manders. ‘In addition, a universal charger is mandatory for each battery category – for, cars, mobile phones… That is a lot of waste and improves user convenience. The battery pack of an electric car must later be equipped with a power bank function, a “reserve tank” with which you always have enough reserve power to reach a charging point to help someone who is standing still. Another example of a proposal from me concerns non-European ones who are active in the European internal market. They have to go through due diligence in the value chain requirements meet the environmental and social requirements that apply to European reeds. That’s good for our companies – we’re finally giving them a level playing field – we’re fighting things like forced labor and environmental pollution.’
deposit
Not all of Manders’ ideas made it into the provisional text of the new European Battery Regulation. For example, he established a ban on the export of used batteries to prevent valuable raw materials from leaving our continent and thus to stimulate the emergence of a European recycling industry. Also his proposal for levying a deposit on small batteries – penlights, button cells, etc. – in order to significantly increase the collection percentage under the influence of the lobby in Brussels. Nevertheless, he is positive about the approval that has now been accepted by the European Parliament. However, he expresses his doubts as to whether its importance has penetrated enough in the Netherlands, especially in the ranks of the government and ministries.
surprise
Europe has always been wars of industrial politics. However, now Important Project(s) of Common European Interest, or IPCEIs, are being decided. Through this instrument (an exception to the state aid rules) the development of production chains for critical technology such as chips, hydrogen applications and batteries. Supporting the possibility in this project of general European interest, a lot of money is also available from Europe for this. Manders indicates that use has been made in the field of hydrogen. According to him, this indicates that there is insufficient focus on the battery sector.
sausage Rolls
The result can be seen, for example, in Tesla’s choice to build a giga battery factory in Belijn instead of Tilburg. The sausage rolls in Brabant lost to the German billion-dollar subsidy. I have already raised this blind spot several times in The Hague. There are large systems of battery cells and modules that are currently watching production in Europe with interest due to EU policy. In the Netherlands you can see the contours of a strong battery chain. Together with TNO and TU/e, we are strong in developing research into large companies such as VDL, Koolen Industries, NXP and other advanced technology of tomorrow. There are enormous economic opportunities in actively stimulating that ecosystem. The Netherlands can emerge, when it cooperates with 3 other EU countries, to make use of the possibilities offered by IPCEI. I therefore call on the government to fully commit to this and not to miss the battery boat.’