EV batteries: Can the West catch up with China? 西方的電動車電池供應鏈是否能夠趕上中國？
新聞來源：Deutsche Welle
日期：2023/04/17
Chinese firms currently dominate the electric vehicle battery supply chain — from mining and refining through to final assembly. This leaves Western automakers with little option but to rely on Chinese-made batteries.
中國公司目前從採礦、精煉到最終組裝，主導著電動車電池供應鏈，這使西方汽車製造商只能依賴中國製造的電池。
The Shanghai Auto Show is opening its doors to car enthusiasts all over the world on Tuesday, after it was canceled last year due to China’s strict zero-COVID curbs.
在去年中國嚴格的清零政策之下，上海車展被迫取消，而這週二（4月18日）將再次向全世界的汽車愛好者敞開大門。
A slew of Chinese and foreign automakers taking part in the event are girding to impress the visitors by unveiling their latest models and technologies, particularly electric vehicles (EVs).
特別是在電動車（EV）方面，許多參加此次活動的中外汽車製造商都準備好展示他們最新的車型和技術，期望讓來賓留下深刻印象。
Chinese firms, including BYD, Geely and Nio, will display a bevy of electric vehicles, with which they aim to cement their already formidable position in the world’s largest auto and EV market.
包括比亞迪（BYD）、吉利（Geely）和蔚來（Nio）在內的中國公司將展示一系列的電動車，以確保其在全球最大的汽車和電動車市場中無法撼動的地位。
It shows how EVs have come to steal the show in the global auto scene amid carmakers’ ambitious e-mobility plans and support from governments worldwide against the backdrop of growing concerns over climate change.
除了氣候變遷的關注度日益提升，在汽車製造商雄心勃勃的電動車計畫和各國政府的支持下，皆展示了電動車如何在全球汽車領域大放異彩。
The Biden administration in the United States, for instance, is proposing new rules to cut pollution from automobiles, which would require as many as two-thirds of new vehicles sold in the United States to be electric by 2032.
例如，拜登政府提出了減低汽車污染的新規定，要求2032年在美國銷售的新車中，電動車應達三分之二。
That would be a nearly tenfold increase over current electric vehicle sales.
這約為目前電動車銷量的十倍。
The EU, meanwhile, aims to speed up the switch to EVs by effectively banning the sale of new petrol and diesel cars in the bloc from 2035.
而歐盟將於2035年禁止銷售新的汽、柴油車，以加速汰換為電動車的進程。
Demand for EV batteries to skyrocket
電動車電池需求量暴增
News agency Reuters estimates that the world’s top automakers are planning to invest nearly $1.2 trillion (€1.08 trillion) in EVs and batteries through 2030.
路透社估計在2030年以前，全球頂尖汽車製造商計劃在電動車和電池上的投資將上看1.2兆美元（約1.08兆歐元）。
And according to the International Energy Agency, the share of battery-powered cars in total auto sales worldwide will jump from about 10% in 2021 to more than 60% by 2030.
根據國際能源署（the International Energy Agency）的數據，電動車在全球汽車總銷量中所佔的比例從2021年的10%左右，將於2030年躍升至60%以上。
All these tens of millions of vehicles will need plenty of batteries — the single most-expensive component in an electric vehicle, accounting for about 30–40% of its cost.
這數千萬輛的汽車意味著龐大的電池需求量，而電池更是電動車中最昂貴的零組件，約佔其30%至40%的成本。
Given the anticipated surge in demand, governments and companies are racing to secure adequate supplies.
有鑑於預期需求的激增，政府和公司正競相確保充足的供應。
But there’s one country that’s clearly in the lead when it comes to battery tech: China.
但在電池技術方面，有一個國家顯然處於領先的地位：中國。
The Asian giant dominates battery production, accounting for almost 75% of global manufacturing capacity, according to BloombergNEF.
據彭博新能源財經（BNEF）報導，亞洲巨頭主導的電池產能約佔全球近75%。
Chinese firms also control various stages of the supply chain — from mining and refining to final assembly.
中國公司還控制著供應鏈上，從採礦、精煉到最終組裝的各個階段。
China’s dominance of the sector stems from the fact that the Chinese government has prioritized electric vehicle technology for years, spending billions of dollars in government subsidies and tax breaks to support the sector.
中國在該產業的主導地位源於政府多年來優先考慮電動車技術，花費數十億美元以政府補貼和減稅的方式來支持該產業。
It has also promoted the setting up of EV infrastructure and encouraged people to buy EVs instead of combustion-engine cars.
並促進電動車的基礎建設，以及鼓勵人們購買電動車而非燃油車。
“Beijing has signaled early on that electric vehicles will be a strategic national priority, inducing Chinese firms to invest in mining, raw material refining and battery technologies,” said Gregor Sebastian, a researcher on China’s industrial policy at the Berlin-based Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS).
柏林墨卡托中國研究所（MERICS）中國產業政策研究員Gregor Sebastian表示：「北京方面早已表示，電動車將成為國家戰略重點，促使中國企業投資採礦、原料精煉和電池技術。」
“As China is by far the world’s biggest car market this is a huge incentive for Chinese firms to enter the sector. In addition, China’s strong manufacturing base and efficient logistical system have allowed firms to quickly scale up production.”
「中國是迄今為止全球最大的汽車市場，強烈的誘因促使中國企業進入該產業，而中國穩固的製造基地和高效的物流系統更使企業能夠迅速擴大生產規模。」
No green transition without Chinese batteries?
中國電池是能源轉型的關鍵？
Many Western automakers like Tesla and General Motors currently rely on Chinese firms like Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., (CATL) — the world’s biggest producer of EV batteries — for their battery needs.
特斯拉（Tesla）和通用汽車（General Motors）等許多西方汽車製造商目前的電池需求都仰賴中國公司，例如全球最大的電動車電池生產商寧德時代（CATL）。
Ford Motors recently announced that it’s licensing CATL’s lithium-iron-phosphate technology for use in a new battery plant it will set up in the US state of Michigan.
福特汽車（Ford Motors）近期宣布，其在美國密西根州設立的新電池廠將使用寧德時代的磷酸鐵鋰（LFP）技術。
The deals show that foreign automakers who want to ditch their gas-guzzling internal combustion engines for electric ones won’t be able to do it without turning to Chinese-made batteries.
這些交易表明，如果外國汽車製造商想要放棄耗油的燃油引擎轉向電動引擎，那就必須使用中國製造的電池。
But they have also drawn criticism from some in the West.
但這也招致了部分西方人的批評。
US Senator Marco Rubio, for instance, urged the Biden administration to review Ford’s licensing tie-up with CATL.
例如，美國參議員馬可‧魯比歐（Marco Rubio）即敦促拜登政府審查福特與寧德時代的合作。
“EV batteries have already become a point of geopolitical tension between China and the West,” said Tu Le, managing director of Sino Auto Insights, a business consulting firm that specializes in transportation.
「電動車電池已經成為中國與西方地緣政治緊張的焦點。」上海汽車產業顧問公司Sino Auto Insights的總經理Tu Le提及。
He pointed out that the Biden administration, with the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), is trying to take Chinese battery cells out of US EV manufacturing supply chains for vehicles manufactured in North America.
他指出，拜登政府通過的《降低通貨膨脹法案》（IRA），正試圖將中國電池從北美電動車製造供應鏈中移除。
The IRA funnels some $370 billion into subsidies for energy transition, including tax breaks for US-made EVs and batteries.
《降低通膨法》投入約3700億美元用於能源轉型補貼，包括針對美國製造的電動車和電池進行減稅措施。
To be eligible for the incentives, companies must source a certain percentage of the components and minerals for EV batteries from the US or its free trade partners.
而公司必須從美國或其他自由貿易夥伴採購一定比例的零組件和原料，才能符合政府獎勵資格。
Tu remains skeptical that Washington’s efforts will succeed.
Tu仍然對美國的努力是否會成功抱持懷疑。
“No matter how much the US government tries to eliminate China from US supply chains, automakers that are manufacturing in the US will still need supply from Chinese battery cell manufacturers, likely from China, if they are to reach any of the pricing and production targets through 2030,” he said.
「無論政府多努力地期望將中國從美國供應鏈中剔除，但假如在美國生產的汽車製造商想在2030 年之前達到任何定價和生產的目標，他們仍需要中國電池製造商的供應，而這很可能來自於中國本土的廠商。」他說。
How does EU fare in battery tech?
歐盟如何在電池技術上立足？
The EU has also been pushing for a domestic EV battery industry for years. In 2017, the bloc launched the European Battery Alliance to kick-start local production. The goal was to get European suppliers to meet 90% of the region’s battery needs by 2030.
多年來，歐盟也持續在推動國內電動車電池產業的發展。2017年，歐盟成立了歐洲電池聯盟（the European Battery Alliance）以啟動在地生產，目標是在2030年前歐洲供應商能夠滿足該地區90%的電池需求。
“European countries like Germany have important technologies for certain parts of the EV battery tech value chain, for instance in recycling, and have been at the forefront of trialing new battery chemistries like sodium-ion batteries,” said Sebastian.
「在電動車電池技術鏈中，德國等歐洲國家擁有部分關鍵技術，像是在回收方面，以及鈉離子電池等新電池化學物質試驗更是處於最前端。」Sebastian表示。
But he stressed that Europe’s battery industry lacks scale and faces difficulties to bridge the gap from initial development to widespread commercialization. “In certain parts of the value chain, like the refining of raw materials, Europe is almost entirely dependent on East Asian firms.”
但他強調，歐洲的電池產業規模並不完整，難以補足從初期發展到廣泛商業化間的斷層。特別是在價值鏈中的原料提煉等階段，歐洲幾乎完全依賴東亞的公司。
Companies like Volkswagen (VW) have plans to invest in mines to secure raw materials for battery making.
福斯集團（VW）等公司計劃投資礦產，以確保電池製造的原料。
As part of its €180 billion ($199.8 billion) five-year spending plan, VW has allocated up to €15 billion for its three announced battery plants and some raw material sourcing.
在1800億歐元（約為1998億美元）的五年支出預算中，福斯已分配高達150億歐元在其宣布的三個電池廠和一些原料採購上。
Some EU countries like Hungary, meanwhile, have been wooing foreign manufacturers, including Chinese ones, to set up battery plants.
同時，匈牙利等歐盟國家持續爭取包括中國在內的外國製造商興建電池廠。
“European firms can catch up, but it will be an uphill battle,” said Sebastian.
「歐洲公司有機會迎頭趕上，但這將是一場硬戰。」Sebastian說。
“The EV battery industry remains in flux. European firms’ best bet to overtake China would be on new, upcoming technologies like solid-state batteries that are not yet dominated by any firm.”
「電動車電池產業變幻莫測，歐洲公司若想超越中國，最好的選擇是採用新興、尖端的技術，比如尚未被任何公司所主導的固態電池。」
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