European Commission approved, in accordance with EU State aid rules, a major project of common European interest (IPCEI) jointly notified by Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland and Sweden to support research and innovation in the field of batteries, informs a statement of the community executive.

The seven Member States will get up to approximately 3.2 billion euros to finance this project in the coming years, which is expected to unlock an additional 5 billion euros in private investment.

The finalization of the general project is planned for 2031 (with different deadlines for each subproject). The project will involve 17 direct participants, mostly industrial actors, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), some of them with activities in several Member States. The direct participants will cooperate closely with each other and with more than 70 external partners, such as SMEs and public research organizations in Europe, according to g4media.