The European Investment Bank (EIB) is investing 350 million U.S. dollars to support the financing of Sweden's Northvolt Ett, Europe's first home-grown gigafactory for lithium-ion battery cells, the bank said in a press release, Trend reports citing Xinhua.
Currently under construction in Skelleftea,northern Sweden, the new gigafactory has the potential annual output of 40 GWh and expects to achieve this goal by utilizing 100 percent renewable energy within its production processes.
The financing of Northvolt Ett is supported by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the main pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe.
All projects and agreements approved for financing under the Investment Plan are expected to mobilize 514 billion euros ( 606 billion U.S. dollars) in investments, of which 14.3 billion euros is destined for Sweden, according to the EIB press release.
"The EIB and the European Commission are strategic partners under the European Battery Alliance (EBA), working closely with the industry and Member States to put Europe on a firm path towards global leadership in this strategic sector," said Maros Sefcovic, the Commission's vice-president in charge of the EBA.
"By supporting this state-of-the-art project, we also confirm our resolve to boost Europe's resilience and strategic autonomy in key industries and technologies," Sefcovic added.
The EBA was launched in 2017, gathering the European Commission, interested EU member states, the EIB, key industry stakeholders and innovation actors, with a goal to create a competitive manufacturing value chain in Europe.