European battery-makers are gearing up to take advantage of massive "green" stimulus packages unveiled since the coronavirus pandemic, though many acknowledge it will be tough to match the Asian giants that dominate the mainstream market.
While Sweden's Northvolt, and more recently France's Verkor, are making a play for large-scale production, other European companies are focusing on niche markets and new technologies rather than taking on Chinese and South Korean firms with mass production of batteries destined for electric vehicles.
From Greek battery-maker Sunlight to startups like InoBat Auto in Slovakia and Switzerland's Innolith, firms say the challenge of building economies of scale fast to compete head-on means finding niches is a more likely path to success, for now.