The largest investment in Hungary's history to date will be realized in Debrecen, where the Chinese Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL), the world's largest battery manufacturer, will establish its second European plant worth approximately HUF 3,000 billion - Levente Magyar, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (KKM) told the public media. Parliamentary State Secretary on Friday.
A series of more than two years of negotiations ended on Friday, as a result of which the CATL facility will be built on an area of 221 hectares, thereby creating about nine thousand new jobs in Hungary, said Levente Magyar, Parliamentary State Secretary of the KKM.
He added that further details of the investment will be made public after the approval of the Chinese company's shareholders' council.
"The Chinese investment will be implemented in the field of electric vehicle production. This also confirms that the government made the right decision when it announced the Chinese opening strategy and defined the electric vehicle industry as one of the main axes of Hungarian economic development," highlighted Levente Magyar.
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited has announced that it will invest 7.34 billion euros in the construction of a battery factory with a capacity of 100 gigawatt hours (GWh) in Debrecen. This will be its second European battery factory after the plant in Germany. Depending on the approval of the general meeting of shareholders, the construction of the first production plant may begin this year.
The project, which will be implemented in the Southern Industrial Park in Debrecen, will supply battery cells and modules to European car manufacturers.
In a statement, the company emphasized: Hungary - and Debrecen in particular - boasts a stable business environment, advanced infrastructure and logistics connections, a long-standing automotive industry and a significant competitive workforce, making it a perfect choice for CATL's second European battery factory.
As the Hungarian plant is close to some of its customers' car factories, such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Stellantis and Volkswagen, CATL will be able to better meet the battery demand of the European market, and also develop its global production network, and e-mobility will contribute , as well as to speed up the European energy transition, the announcement reads.
As part of its commitment to reducing the carbon footprint of battery production, CATL will use electricity from renewable energies and will also consider the implementation of solar energy-based developments in Hungary in cooperation with local partners, the statement says.
Source: Magyar Hírlap
Photo: MH/Tamás Purger
