PRESS RELEASE EU: IG Metall Welcomes Extension of Rules for Electric Cars and Batteries in Trade with the United Kingdom

IG Metall welcomes the European Commission’s proposal to extend the transition period for electric vehicles and batteries in the Trade and Cooperation Agreement with the United Kingdom by three years. EU member states are now called upon to adopt this proposal swiftly and implement it in the Partnership Council with the British side.

Rules of origin are intended to ensure that products “Made in the EU” contribute significantly to European value creation and employment. In our view, any exceptions to these rules can only be temporary in nature.

Unfortunately, we must acknowledge that—despite encouraging investment decisions and announcements—the scaling up of European battery cell production cannot keep pace with growing demand. Therefore, we will continue to rely on imports from third countries in the coming years. The alternative—scaling back production capacity for battery-electric vehicles—cannot be an option, if only from an employment policy perspective. Combined with a massive increase in the cost of EU exports due to import duties, this would leave this important market to competitors from third countries, not least from China.

In addition to the swift extension of the transition period, it is crucial from an industrial policy perspective to further accelerate the expansion of European battery cell production. IG Metall welcomes the European Commission’s announcement to provide an additional 3 billion euros as part of the Innovation Fund for a dedicated instrument for the battery value chain.

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