BEPA SIGNS A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION AND AUTOMOTIVE R&I PARTNERSHIPS TO REINFORCE RESEARCH AND INNOVATION IN THE AUTOMOTIVE SECTOR
12 September 2025
The Batteries European Partnership Association (BEPA) has co-signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the European Commission, EGVIAfor2ZERO and the CCAM Association to reinforce research and innovation in the automotive sector. The agreement highlights the Commission’s recognition of batteries as a key enabling technology for Europe’s competitiveness.
Batteries are a key enabling technology for Europe’s competitiveness across a wide range of economic sectors, including the automotive industry. Recognising their strategic importance, the Industrial Action Plan for the European Automotive Sector, presented on 5 March 2025, identifies batteries as a central pillar. As the driving force behind clean automotive mobility—and still one of the largest cost components of electric vehicles—batteries remain critical to Europe’s industrial strength and technological leadership.
Today, 12 September 2025, as part of the Strategic Dialogue on the future of the automotive industry, BEPA, the European voice of battery R&I, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the European Commission (DG-RTD and DG-MOVE) and the automotive R&I partnership associations (EGVIAfor2ZERO and CCAM). The goal of this MoU is to give concrete expression to the innovation needs outlined in the Industrial Action Plan.
The Parties will work together on a joint vision for the technological competitiveness of the EU automotive sector, looking at the broader international context and developing a joint Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda, as well as an overview of existing R&I programmes in Europe on national and regional levels.
The MoU is a clear recognition of the key role BEPA will have in highlighting the further R&I needs on battery technologies for the automotive applications. BEPA will also be mapping out R&I needs for battery integration into electric vehicles and the integration of electric vehicles into the grid.
“BEPA brings the entire battery value chain together and it is promising to see that this force is being mobilised for the automotive sector” , states Franz Geyer (BMW Group and BEPA Executive Board member representing the automotive sector).
“BEPA, and the battery R&I community at large, are fully committed to deliver what the European Automotive sector needs”, BEPA Vice-President for Research Marina Urbina (CEA-Liten) adds, “but we will also keep working on battery solutions for other mobile and stationary applications, fostering strong synergies across all segments on materials development, recycling and basic research, all needed for our future competitiveness.”
“We are happy to see the role of batteries as a key enabling technology for the energy transition and European competitiveness recognised by the European Commission”, BEPA President Michael Lippert (SAFT) asserts, “which is why we are counting on the European Union to keep funding battery R&I through a dedicated Partnership under the next European budget.”
Agreeing with Mr Lippert, BEPA Secretary General Fabrice Stassin (UMICORE) concludes: “We are grateful to the EU Commission for recognising the key role of BEPA. We hope this recognition will come in the form of a stand-alone battery partnership under the next MFF.”
BEPA welcomes the opportunity to join forces with its fellow R&I partnerships and the European Commission. By working together, we can ensure that research outcomes are closely aligned with the needs of the automotive sector and industry, strengthening Europe’s technological base where it is most urgently required.
Looking ahead, BEPA will continue to act as a driving force in the automotive sector while underlining that batteries are indispensable far beyond electric vehicles. They are the backbone of Europe’s clean energy transition, enabling progress in mobility, energy storage, consumer electronics, and strategic sectors such as defence and aerospace. Ensuring Europe’s competitiveness in this enabling technology requires stable, long-term support for battery R&I.
This is why BEPA calls for a dedicated, stand-alone battery partnership in the next Multiannual Financial Framework. Such a partnership would complement and reinforce the future Automotive JU that might stem from this MoU, safeguard Europe’s leadership in battery innovation, and secure the foundation for a sustainable, sovereign, and competitive European economy.
