Groupe PSA/Opel and
Total/Saft (Saft is a subsidiary of Total that is involved in the design, development and the manufacturing of batteries used in transport, industry and defence) have signed an agreement for the creation of the joint venture ACC.
With this partnership, the companies are establishing a “world-class player in the development and manufacture of high-performance batteries for the automotive industry from 2023”.
Total/Saft will contribute its expertise in R&D and industrialisation, and Groupe PSA its knowledge of the automotive market and its experience in production. The R&D centre in Bordeaux and the pilot site in Nersac (France) have already started in order to develop the new high-performance lithium-ion technologies.
At the end of this R&D phase, production is planned to be launched at two ‘gigafactories’ — in Douvrin (France) and Kaiserslautern (Germany).
This project aims to: reduce the environmental footprint of vehicles; produce batteries for electric vehicles that will be at the highest technological level in terms of energy performance, autonomy, recharging time and carbon footprint; develop production capacity, essential to accompany the growth in demand for electric vehicles in a European market estimated at 400GWhr by 2030 (15-times the current market); ensure industrial independence in Europe for the conception and manufacture of batteries (with an initial capacity of 8GWhr, reaching a cumulative capacity of 48GWhr on both sites by 2030); and position ACC as a major competitive player in supplying electric vehicle manufacturers.
Carlos Tavares, chairman of Groupe PSA, said: “The construction of the European battery consortium that we wished for is now a reality. I would like to pay special tribute to the commitment of the Total/Saft and Groupe PSA/Opel teams who have made this project come true.
“This new step is consistent with our central purpose of ‘offering citizens clean, safe and affordable mobility’ and gives Groupe PSA a competitive advantage in the context of growing sales of electric vehicles. ACC takes Groupe PSA further along the road to carbon neutrality.”
Patrick Pouyanné, chairman of Total, added: “The creation of ACC illustrates Total’s commitment to meet the challenge of climate change. Our ambition is to leverage the recognised expertise of Saft in batteries and the industrial know-how of our partner PSA to meet the strong growth of electric vehicles in Europe.
“I would like to offer my encouragement to the teams who will be joining ACC to make this adventure a real European technological and industrial success.”