The III. Hungarian Battery Day will be organised on 26 October 2023 in Hotel Marriott Budapest, by the Hungarian Battery Association and White Paper Consulting to reflect on the opportunities and challenges of the fast-developing Hungarian battery industry. The most important annual meeting point for the stakeholders of the battery industry of Central Eastern Europe will be organised under the honorary patronage of H.E. Mr Márton Nagy, Minister of Economic Development of Hungary, who will open the conference.
In the past years, the battery industry has become a rapidly expanding sector of the Hungarian economy. The world’s top battery makers are ramping up expansion plans in the country to meet demand from Europe’s automakers, signalling that the importance of the sector will increase even further in the future.
Batteries are also in the spotlight as they support the green transition. The development of energy storage solutions can greatly contribute to the sustainable transformation of the transport and energy industry bringing us closer to our climate objectives.
The III. Hungarian Battery Day will bring together the leaders of major battery stakeholders as well as high-ranking government and European Union decision-makers to discuss the future of the industry.
As a unique and well-established platform, the Hungarian Battery Day aims to support sectoral cooperation by connecting stakeholders and accelerating international cooperation that will be necessary to deliver our common climate ambitions by 2050.
The conference will be opened by H.E. Mr Márton Nagy, Minister of Economic Development of Hungary, who will present the role of the battery industry in Hungary’s economic growth and the goals and tools of the Hungarian government to support the further uptake of the sector.
Leading battery market player CATL, who is building Europe’s largest battery plant in Hungary, will be also present at the event. Jason Chen, COO of CATL Europe will give an overview of the construction of the 100 GWh (gigawatt hours) plant and share, how the world’s biggest battery maker gears up to meet growing demand from global automakers.
The conference will shed light on Hungary’s position in the global battery industry as István Joó, CEO of the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency and Government Commissioner for Investment Promotion and Implementation of Large FDI Projects will give an overview of the key investments of the past year.
As the battery industry has a crucial role in Europe’s green transition, the III. Hungarian Battery Day will feature high-level speakers such as Thore Sekkenes, Program Director of the European Battery Alliance; Rene Schroeder, Executive Director of Eurobat and Fabrice Stassin, Working Group Chair for Advanced Materials of Batteries Europe who will speak about the most recent developments of the European regulatory framework and the EU’s strategy to remain a global battery frontrunner.
Bob Galyen, SAE’s Chairman of the Battery Standards Steering Committee and CTO of NAATBatt – recognised as a top international executive in the battery energy storage world – will also attend the III. Hungarian Battery Day, sharing his insights regarding the battery industry developments in North America after the Inflation Reduction Act.
The Hungarian government is committed to promoting the implementation of a low-carbon energy economy by providing support for the deployment of energy storage projects. Attila Steiner, Hungary’s State Secretary for Energy and Climate will present the opportunities for grid-integrated and market-based energy storage investment support schemes in Hungary at the conference.
The III. Hungarian Battery Day will feature discussions about the most relevant topics of the battery industry, including the prospects of battery recycling; opportunities for local and European suppliers in the Hungarian battery industry landscape; the scope for regional cooperation; the latest battery-related R&D&I in Hungary; environment, health, and safety in the battery industry; as well as training and skills in the battery industry.
High-level speakers will join from major industry stakeholders such as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Association for Storage of Energy (EASE), Atlas Copco, MOL, Umicore, UniCredit Bank, Kinstellar, Pact Capital AG, Éltex, SungEel Hitech, EIT Innoenergy and many more, who will discuss the challenges and opportunities of the battery industry and share their insights about future of the sector.
Further information on the III. Hungarian Battery Day is accessible on the website of the conference.