Thursday's ministerial meeting actually dealt mostly with the former ECB chief Mario Draghi's major report on how to improve competitiveness in Europe.
Although everyone agrees on the need, there is still ongoing disagreement about the right way to do it. No common conclusions on competitiveness were reached due to stubborn resistance from Germany regarding opening up EU funds for building nuclear power.
Battery Discussion
Another topic of discussion was a Swedish initiative on battery manufacturing in Europe – an acute issue considering the crisis at Northvolt.
The battery sector must receive support in terms of funding going forward, but also in terms of the pace of permit processes and reduced regulatory burden, says Ebba Busch on site in Brussels.
She does not want to talk about direct EU support to Northvolt, but hopes that the company will be eligible in a situation where – and if – European battery manufacturing is deemed necessary to support with EU funds.
It would be very unfortunate if these discussions around competitiveness and the Draghi report result in primarily only supporting new companies and not also ensuring that those that can realistically drive the transformation forward get momentum, says Busch.
Emergency Aid?
Thursday's meeting did not involve immediate decisions, but rather pressing for future actions and promises from the EU Commission. The idea is that it should also be able to provide acute assistance to Northvolt in attracting new investors.
We know that their ability to secure additional capital in the short term is affected by how the European market is read in the long term, says Busch.
The Minister of Enterprise is urging the EU Commission to actually implement the regulatory relief that has consistently been promised – but rarely become reality:
We need to see more action and fewer words.
