By completing a record fundraising round, the French start-up Verkor has taken a decisive step towards the installation of its gigafactory for the production of electric batteries in Dunkirk, in the north of France. The company, which will first supply the car manufacturer Renault, announced on Thursday September 14 that it had brought together “more than 2 billion euros”, including the record amount of“at least 850 million euros” from private investors.
This is the largest fundraising for a start-up in French industry to date. In addition to private subsidies, there is a public subsidy of around 650 million euros – subject to validation by the European Commission – as well as a loan of 600 million euros from the European Investment Bank.
The French state is funding the project in the hope of boosting the European electric car industry in the face of Asian competition, while the Hauts-de-France region aims to become the leader in battery production. in Europe.
“A strong signal about our reindustrialization ambition”
Quoted in a company press release, the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, “congratulate” Verkor for this round of discussion “historical” Who “sends a strong signal about our reindustrialization ambition”. “France is attracting, reindustrializing, decarbonizing its economy, creating jobs! »he added on the social network (ex-Twitter).
The operation, “a very important step”values the start-up at “more than a billion euros”Benoit Lemaignan, co-founder and president of the company, told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Founded in 2020, Verkor inaugurated its high-power battery pilot plant in Grenoble at the end of June and plans to open its factory in Dunkirk by 2025, with 1,200 direct jobs and initial production of 16 gigawatt hours. (GWh) per year.
On the site, the first works are underway. Financing completed “gives good visibility” For “build the factory, bring in the machines, assemble the team and get started”explains the manager.
The Verkor start-up is closely monitored by the French government. Built as a symbol of reindustrialization, the factory should help the French automobile industry achieve the objective of two million electric cars produced in France in 2030, after many years of relocation.
Renault will buy three quarters of production
Australian asset manager Macquarie Asset Management is the “main investor”, “with support” of Meridiam, a French fund specializing in infrastructure, which told AFP that it had paid 200 million euros. These two entities will become the first shareholders, according to the Elysée.
The Strategic Participation Fund (FSP), an alliance of seven major French insurance companies, also “made a major investment”according to a press release from Isalt, the fund management company. “It is a very symbolic investment of what the question of reindustrialization can be in France with a cutting-edge industry”Nicolas Dubourg, general director of the FSP, explained to AFP.
Several existing shareholders contributed again, notably the car manufacturer Renault, which had already committed to buying three-quarters of Verkor’s production. The batteries produced in Dunkirk will be used in future Alpine models from 2025 “as well as vehicles from higher segments of the Renault range”declares the group’s boss, Luca de Meo, in the press release.
Le Monde Buying Guides
Reusable water bottles
The best water bottles to replace disposable bottles
Read
“We are not intended to only supply Renault”, however, said Mr. Lemaignan. This gigafactory responds to “a short-term market need” while building “an industrial tool that will last for decades”he assures, describing the batteries as “oil of tomorrow in mobility”.
Create a “battery valley”
Currently, the manufacturing of batteries and the refining of the materials they are made of are dominated by Asian groups. But Verkor is not alone in setting up in France: the Taiwanese manufacturer ProLogium has obtained a state subsidy of 1.5 billion euros for its first factory, also in Dunkirk, with an opening planned for 2026.
One hundred kilometers south, in Douvrin (North), Stellantis, TotalEnergies and Mercedes have established the first French battery factory for electric cars, with their joint venture Automotive Cells Company (ACC). And Renault must open its own factory with the Chinese group AESC-Envision in 2024, also in the North, in Douai.
“We are in the process of creating a real battery valley” with four factories, which “will allow France to be autonomous in battery production”welcomed the French presidency.
In Germany, the large Chinese technology group CATL (for Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited) launched the construction of a factory in 2019. Public financing shows that Europe is “capable of supporting this industry” in the same way as the United States with the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), estimated the boss of Verkor.
“We have nothing to be ashamed of” amounts, but “the American start-up speed is probably significantly faster today”Judge M. Lemaignan, adding that “American pragmatism must challenge us”.