EU signs battery material deal with Kazakhstan
The EU has signed a deal with Kazakhstan on supply of raw materials and refined materials for batteries as well as renewable hydrogen and battery value chains.
The memorandum of understanding signed by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Alikhan Smailov, Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, will identify joint projects throughout the battery value chains including recycling and attracting private investment. It will also look to modernise mining and refining processes and technologies with new technologies for critical Raw Materials for wind turbines (with rare earth magnets); batteries (lithium and cobalt) and semiconductors (polysilicon).
The deal will also include cooperation on capacity-building, skills and research & innovation, with plans to develop a Roadmap for 2023-2024 and concrete joint actions agreed within six months of the signature of the Partnership.
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President von der Leyen is to meet with President of Namibia Hage Geingob to sign a similar partnership between the European Union and Namibia. This follows similar deals with Canada and Ukraine last year.
“The European Union and Kazakhstan have developed strong economic ties over the years. The European Union is by far the largest foreign investor in Kazakhstan, with 60% of the stock of foreign direct investment,” said von der Leyen. “The Memorandum of Understanding we have just signed will now further expand this relationship and align it with the shared priorities of both parties.
Together, we will work to better integrate our strategic value chains related to raw materials, to batteries and to renewable hydrogen. We know that all of this requires an appropriate amount of specific raw materials, and in particular minerals of which Kazakhstan is so rich,” she said.
“The real work starts now. We will take stock in six months, by which time we aim to have designed an operational roadmap, in partnership with our Member States, with industry and with the stakeholders.”
The action plan for Raw Materials is at ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_1542
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