Co-funded by the
European Union
Verkor Innovation Centre opens for business
Verkor, the European pioneer in low-carbon batteries for electric vehicles, has inaugurated the 2-hectare Verkor Innovation Centre (VIC). The VIC aims to industrialize high-performance, low-carbon battery cells and train future battery experts.
Re-industrializing Europe
Verkor is committed to accelerating battery production in Europe, in particular with the VIC and its potential to produce 150 MWh of battery cells per year. These cells are produced in compliance with sustainable development criteria (carbon footprint, recycling, traceability and talent development).
Roland Lescure, French Minister for Industry, announced that “the inauguration of the Verkor Innovation Centre is in line with all the recent announcements concerning the reindustrialization of our country”. This green reindustrialization of France and Europe will involve the design and development of low-carbon solutions to meet the challenges of climate change.
École de la batterie
In August 2022, Verkor and its 11 partners launched the École de la Batterie to meet the need for a large workforce. The VIC will also have a training objective, to prepare the arrival of a new generation of experts in the battery industry.
This support and these resources will enable the École de la Batterie to train 1,600 people a year.
Key partners
Verkor, producer of new-generation batteries, has been able to count on the support of its collaborators, the EIT InnoEnergy, Renault Group, Groupe IDEC, Schneider Electric, Cap Gemini, EQT Ventures, Arkema, Tokai COBEX, the FMET managed by Demeter, Sibanye-Stillwater, Plastic Omnium and Bpifrance, throughout this process.
Last April, a long-term commercial partnership was signed between Renault and Verkor, for the supply of high-performance low-carbon batteries to be allocated to Alpine and Renault cars.
From now on, Verkor will be able to move ahead with the construction of its first Gigafactory in Dunkirk, with a capacity of 16 GWh/year. The Gigafactory is currently in the process of raising over a billion euros in financing.
Benoit Lemaignan adds: “Our collective mission is to produce high-performance, low-carbon batteries on a large scale, in order to accelerate the transition to energy and industry in France and Europe. The VIC is an essential step in this process. We have now reached this milestone, and can now move ahead with the construction of our first Gigafactory, the financing details of which will be announced shortly”.
