National Battery Strategy 2025

Country / jurisdiction: Finland · Year: 2021 · Status: In force · Level: National · Type: Voluntary

In 2020, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment started to formulate a National Battery Strategy to encourage projects in the battery sector and help Finland become an important player in the battery and electrification sector, focusing on the processing of responsibly-sourced raw materials and research activities related to battery materials and recycling. Under this Strategy, the government "aims to be the world’s number one expert in battery minerals," specifically focusing on cobalt, nickel, lithium, copper, and graphite.  Released in 2021, it outlines seven objectives for the 2021-2025 period:

Growth and renewal of the battery and electrification cluster

Growth of investments

Promotion of competitiveness

Increased international awareness of the strategy

Responsibility

Definition of key roles in the sector's new value chains

Promotion of circular economy and digital solutions

The key measures to be taken are as follows:

Promote cooperation through a national cooperation body

Expand the competence of the sector

Strengthen international contacts

Develop an environment conducive to investments

Promote responsibility within the sector

Strengthen the brand and communications about the sector

Develop funding

Additionally, the 2021 budget included additional EUR 300 million in funding for the Finnish Minerals Group (a special-purpose company wholly owned by the State of Finland) to promote investments for the production of precursor and cathode active materials used in lithium-ion batteries in the country. In 2022, Finland announced the development of a mine and refinery at Kokkola Industrial Park that will produce battery-grade lithium hydroxide for electric vehicles. The project will be operated by Keliber, a Finnish mining and battery chemicals company that was recently acquired from the Finnish Minerals Group by South African mining company Sibanye Stillwater.

Official source: https://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/162685/TEM_2021_6.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y