The challenges and opportunities of Europe’s gigafactory pipeline

Between January 2023 and January 2026, the global gigafactory pipeline grew 27% to over 10TWh. Europe, however, fell 8% to just over 1TWh – the only major region to see a drop in capacity over this time period.

Despite this drop, the strength of the projects in the pipeline is greater than it was three years ago, Benchmark chief executive Andrew Miller told delegates at Giga Europe 2026 in Brussels.

“So while the overall capacity pipeline in Europe is smaller than it was a few years ago,” Miller said. “I think what we’re left with is far more credible projects to drive the industry forward.”

Benchmark CEO Andrew Miller talks at Giga Europe 2026. Photo credit: Jens Reiterer

Europe’s strength is in demand growth and innovation

Despite challenges in scaling up the supply part of the equation, Europe’s battery demand growth is strong. Of all the major regions, Europe saw the greatest EV battery demand growth rate between 2024 and 2025.

Innovation is another key strength of Europe’s battery supply chain, supported by strong connections to universities and a burgeoning startup scene.

“We are very good at the early stages of the innovation cycle,” Ann Mettler, President of Catalyse Europe and board member at the European Innovation Council, said. “We know we have strong research. We also have strong startups. What’s been the bottleneck all along is scaling and commercialisation.”

Ann Mettler (EIC) talks to Benchmark's Bryan Bille Giga Europe 2026. Photo credit: Jens Reiterer

What challenges face Europe’s battery industry?

Compared to China and the US, Europe lacks extensive incentive schemes to encourage the domestic build-out of gigafactories, which some say has held back the growth of the industry.

“We can no longer go on the way we have, because our own companies have had to compete on a completely unlevel playing field,” Mettler said.

Europe doesn’t have a strong resource geography in terms of the key critical minerals required to build out the upstream part of the supply chain. As such, building critical mineral extraction capacity can come at an added cost compared to more resource-rich jurisdictions.

“Security of supply comes at a price,” Vincenzo Conforti, Glencore’s head of government relations (Europe) said. “We cannot only accept security of supply if it comes for free.”

Vincenzo Conforti (Glencore) discusses security of supply at Giga Europe 2026. Photo credit: Jens Reiterer

Europe’s policy approach to building a battery industry

Over recent years, the European Union (EU) has developed a suite of policies to increase its domestic supply chain to better support the build-out of its battery industry, the latest of which is the Industrial Accelerator Act, which includes Made in EU requirements.

“It is a good step in the right direction,” said Quentin Lamarche, CEO of TechMet SCM. “We need to work on the ecosystem approach [...] to improve the conditions for operating in Europe.”

Joint ventures can support industry

Although a domestic battery industry is important for Europe, it can accelerate its growth by partnering with those that have already proven their capabilities, namely Chinese players.

“Joint ventures with technology transfer is a positive step,” Fracesco Gattiglio, vice president for external affairs at Albemarle, said.

However, partnering with non-European entities needs to be approached strategically and with sufficient safe guards.

“You need to protect European industry,” Madalina Ivanica, deputy head of unit at DG GROW in the European Commission, said, noting that the Industrial Accelerator Act proposes a 49% cap on the share a foreign entity can hold in a European project acting within a strategic industry.

Chinese involvement in Europe’s battery industry is set to grow substantially. In 2025, 14% of Europe’s battery capacity had Chinese involvement, compared to 44% in 2030 as assessed by Benchmark’s Battery & Gigafactory Service.

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