Second week. Two countries. Countless conversations. My battery industry tour continued through Germany and the Netherlands, and here’s what I found:
🇩🇪 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆: 𝗖𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗻
The fallout from Northvolt continues to cast a long shadow. Local players are in a bind—fully aware of the cracks in their current strategies but unable to see a clear alternative. So, what’s the plan? For most, it’s doubling down on the familiar.
The lack of bold vision is worrying. If we’re to close the gap with Asia’s battery giants, “business as usual” won’t cut it.
🇳🇱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀: 𝗛𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻
The Dutch mood is entirely different, for all the right reasons. There’s an entrepreneurial energy that Germany seems to be missing right now. Using Eindhoven as a base for a week of back-to-back meetings—we met teams hustling hard:
💰 Securing funding (like CarbonX)
🏭 Preparing to scale up next-gen battery technologies (can't say yet who 🤫)
📜 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 refreshing—this is exactly the kind of grit and clarity the EU battery sector needs. I’m glad to be supporting these efforts, bringing new solutions to the table.
🛣️ 𝗧𝘄𝗼 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗲𝘀
Days packed with 2–3 meetings, broken up by long drives or short flights. Now I’m back in Istanbul. While Western Europe slows down for the holiday season, I’ll be here, using the quiet to plan for 2024. New year, new challenges, and new opportunities to help scale cleantech across Europe.
💬𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀?
What do you think will drive the EU battery industry forward—vision, 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!