Romania aiming to rapidly develop battery sector

Romania is seeking to develop its domestic battery industry and is working with EU partners to train workers and achieve national and European climate and circular economy targets.

The country’s economy and education ministries have signed a memorandum of understanding with public-private investment group EIT InnoEnergy, which is backed by the EU’s European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), to develop the battery sector. Romania will work with EIT InnoEnergy to accelerate Romania’s involvement in the European battery value chain and achieve national and European climate and circular economy targets.

Romania is aiming to develop and implement a national battery strategy that aligns with the needs and opportunities of Europe’s value chain. To that end, the country is planning to train some 20,000 people in the field over the next four years to overcome the existing skill gap in the battery sector.

As part of the ambitious undertaking, the country is establishing the European Battery Alliance Academy (EBA), a benchmark program designed to train a workforce across the European battery value chain. The EBA will focus on regions benefiting from the European Fund for a Just Transition, including the counties of Dolj, Gorj, Mureș, Hunedoara, Prahova and Galați.

In addition, partnerships will be formed with several Romanian universities to introduce new bachelor and master programs.

“We aim to be more future-oriented, including in projects related to the circular economy that can attract investment and generate new jobs,” said Romanian Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă. “We want to attract investments of at least €2 billion in the battery sector in the next five years. Today’s signing of this agreement with EIT InnoEnergy is a step in this direction. We want to equip the battery workforce to attract investment more easily.”

EIT InnoEnergy CEO Diego Pavía added, “By 2025, battery related projects will create three to four million direct and indirect jobs, which means that around 800,000 workers in Europe will need to be retrained and upgraded with battery-specific expertise. This will require a considerable effort and I am delighted that the EBA Academy has been successful in meeting the training needs in countries such as France, Spain, Hungary and now Romania. To create a more sustainable world, while improving European energy security, we need to build the capacity, skills and investment in innovation to make this happen.”