EU May Become Dependent on Batteries from China, as It Was before on Energy from Russia

By 2030, the European Union may become as dependent on lithium-ion batteries and fuel cells from China as it was on Russian energy before Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine.

As Reuters rerports, a document prepared for EU leaders for their meeting on Europe's economic security says that due to the intermittent nature of renewable energy sources such as solar or wind energy, Europe will need ways to store energy to achieve its goal of zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050.

This should lead to a rapid increase in demand for lithium-ion batteries, fuel cells and electrolysers, which is expected to increase by 10-30 times in the coming years.

"If no decisive measures are taken, by 2030 the European energy ecosystem may become dependent on China, which will have a different nature, but will be as serious as the dependence on Russia before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine," the document reads.

However, lithium-ion batteries and fuel cells were not the only area of vulnerability for the EU, the document says, as a similar scenario could unfold in the digital technology space.

"Forecasts show that the demand for digital devices such as sensors, drones, data servers, storage equipment and data networks will increase dramatically this decade," the report says.

The document notes that by 2030, this dependence could seriously hinder the productivity gains that European industry and services urgently need, as well as prevent the modernisation of agricultural systems needed to address climate change.

The German government is considering a ban on the use of Chinese components in critical elements of mobile networks.

The European Commission is calling on member states to quickly limit the use of equipment for 5G networks from Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE and wants to stop cooperation with operators that use their equipment. 

There have also been proposals to ban European businesses from manufacturing critical modern technologies such as supercomputers, artificial intelligence and advanced chips in China and similar countries.