background

It is presently very hard to be competitive in the small-scale production of energy high-density cells. This involves large investments, a qualified workforce and rationality in their education and training. However the “one fits all” and “once-upon a lifetime” education models are not enough. Today, adaption to the individual background, knowledge gaps, ambitions and way of learning are necessary to find suitable educational and skills training. Production of high-energy density battery cells at a very low price (compared with today) is a necessity for the development of the activity in the future chain links in the value chain of electromobility.

Many businesses want to engage in the battery-pack or battery systems link of the value chain, producing solutions for different application areas. These work environments are less automated and more dependent on manual labour. The question is however if there will be enough supply of green European cells needed for development of this sector to full potential.

In mobile applications stage such as energy for electric cars and ferries, much will change and new entrepreneurs are entering. Certain car factories can be smaller than before. Vehicle production, a backbone of European industry, is gearing up for many organisational changes to implement electromobility. This is an area for close cooperation with the ERASMUS+ DRIVES project in the automotive sector.

For other mobile applications, such as wearables, tools, etc – there are presently differences in cell chemistry compared to cells for transportation, and the need for cells is not as massive either.

The availability of a skilled workforce is crucial to enable companies to be established in Europe. By forming a consortium at the European level, we can collect the necessary expertise to develop the needed qualifications for the sector, based on competencies. This makes the qualifications more transparent and will also facilitate the movement of the European workforce across the continent.