German and European car suppliers to profit from e-car boom

With their products and skills, Germany’s car supplier companies will be able to benefit greatly from the shift to e-mobility, despite the competition from other world markets, writes business daily Handelsblatt. According to technology consultancy Altran’s Peter Fintl, the projected sales volume “is so gigantic, Europe cannot miss this opportunity”. While battery cell production was largely in the hands of businesses in South Korea, Japan or China, German companies play an important role in technology areas from cell chemistry and the cooling system to the controlling and packaging of batteries, writes Handelsblatt. “In the coming years, many battery manufacturers will settle in Europe. We stand ready as a supplier,” says Matthias Zachert, CEO of Cologne-based chemicals company Lanxess AG. Other big players like BASF and Wacker Chemie also have a good starting position to profit from a growing e-mobility market, writes Handelsblatt.

While Germany's carmakers are in the process of speeding up electrification plans, many jobs in the country's supplier industry depend on the combustion engine, causing powerful car industry lobby group VDA and others to insists that combustion engines can be part of a clean mobility future if synthetic fuels are used.