French battery maker ACC welcomes EU auto sector support

PARIS: French battery maker Automotive Cells Company said on Thursday it welcomed support from the European Union for the auto sector, but also feared that it would come too late.

The European Commission unveiled an action plan for the auto industry on Wednesday to help it meet a target for zero carbon emissions from any cars and vans sold in the region by 2035.

It included making available 1.8 billion euros ($1.94 billion) to help secure supply chains for battery raw materials.

ACC, which is jointly owned by Stellantis, Mercedes and TotalEnergies, said in a post on LinkedIn that it welcomed the support from a "medium-term action plan" to help Europe's industry close the gap with Asian producers.

"Nevertheless, we fear that the urgency of the situation we are currently going through is not being considered. To benefit from it, we will have to have managed to survive until then," it added.

ACC has sharply slowed its battery production plans due to uncertainty over electric vehicle demand in Europe and the emergence of more affordable battery chemistries.

When it launched its first gigafactory in northern France in May 2023 the group was planning nine production blocks by 2030, spread across France, Germany and Italy, backed by 7.3 billion euros in investment.

But the German and Italian projects have since been put on hold, and only one block in France producing batteries for Stellantis is operational, with a second to start at the end of the year. (Reporting by Gilles Guillaume; Writing by Makini Brice and Dominique Patton, Editing by Dominique Vidalon, Kirsten Donovan)