Mr. Blair Way reports

EU BATTERY ALLIANCE DELIVERS STRATEGIC PLAN TO DEVELOP LARGE SCALE LITHIUM ION BATTERY INDUSTRY IN EUROPE

Leading Edge Materials Corp. has released the major priority recommendations of the European Union Battery Alliance, which were delivered in Brussels on Friday, Feb. 23, as part of the E.U. Industry Days. The EU Battery Alliance was established by vice-president for energy union, Maros Sefcovic, on Oct. 11, 2017, following a high-level meeting with Europe's leading industrial companies.

Leading Edge Materials is proud to be an active raw material industry representative within the EU Battery Alliance, which comprises more than 50 of Europe's strongest corporate voices within the emerging lithium-ion battery sector, plus numerous support and government agencies. Leading Edge Materials is the only potential supplier of natural graphite anode material within the alliance, which allowed the company's voice to be clearly heard with regard to the sustainable supply of European raw materials.

The EU Battery Alliance was formed in response to the recognition that despite world-leading fundamental research and a broad customer base, particularly in the automotive industry, Europe is not playing a significant role in the industrial production of lithium-ion batteries. European Commission research estimates that by 2025, the European battery market will have an annual value in the order of 250 billion euros, reflecting approximately 200 gigawatt-hours of energy storage capacity per year, an industry too large to be left to global competitors.

The EU Battery Alliance was directed to identify a strategic plan to accelerate the installation of large-scale battery-cell production capabilities in Europe. Discussions were focused on creating competitiveness throughout the entire European battery value chain, while increasing the sustainability of the industry through responsible and where possible local sourcing. A collaborative approach is viewed as an essential precursor, with skills drawn from European mining, chemical, energy, manufacturing and automotive industries.

"Our objective for the Alliance is simple, but the challenge is immense. We want, almost from scratch, to create a competitive and sustainable, battery-cell manufacturing in Europe supported by a full E.U.-based value chain," said Maros Sefcovic at Industry Days Forum, Feb. 23, 2018.

A number of priority actions were identified by the EU Battery Alliance, including:

• Invest in research and development and pilot plants to take the technology lead in primary and secondary raw materials processing;
• Build European alliances between industries from different parts of the value chain and politics to boost mining and intermediate product production in E.U.;
• Define cell manufacturing as a strategic industry;
• Implement same compliance rules to foreign battery products imported to Europe as applied to European products;
• Define and implement certification/labelling of batteries made in Europe. Use the declaration as a tool in trade agreements and tax treatment with non-E.U. battery providers;

InnoEnergy has published a short introduction to the work completed to date, available on-line.

Leading Edge Materials is committed to pursue any opportunities that might arise from this alliance in order to become a supplier in a competitive and sustainable fully E.U.-based value chain.

About Leading Edge Materials Corp.

Leading Edge Materials was formed with the company's sights firmly focused on the material demands of a once-in-a-generation revolution as the world shifts to the efficient production, storage and preservation of low-carbon energy. From the lithium batteries in the company's electric vehicles to the company's ability to generate energy from the sun, wind and waves, Leading Edge Materials is focused on the green energy markets. With a focus on Europe and assets in innovation-rich Scandinavia, Leading Edge Materials is ideally placed to play a pivotal role in the sustainable supply of critical technology materials.

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