Declaration on the accession of the Republic of Bulgaria to the European Battery Alliance (EBA250) was signed on 24 April 2023 in Sofia TechPark.
The document was signed by Marcin Wasilewski, Chief Executive Officer of EIT InnoEnergy for Central Europe and Bogdan Bogdanov, Executive Director of InvestBulgaria Agency (IBA). IBA will be the official representative of our country in the European Battery Alliance.
The ceremony was attended by President Rumen Radev, EU Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Mariya Gabriel, Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Pekanov, Minister of Innovation and Growth Alexander Pulev, Minister of Economy and Industry Nikola Stoyanov, Minister of Energy Rossen Hristov, representatives of business, science and education. Among the invitees were also Corr. Mem. Evelina Slavcheva, Director of the Institute of Electrochemistry and Energy Systems of BAS and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Plamen Nikolov, Deputy Director of the Institute.
A delegation of representatives of EBA250, headed by Marcin Wasilewski and Fruzsina Csonka. Business Development Manager responsible for the coordination of EIT InnoEnergy’s commercial activities in Central Europe, together with representatives of IBA, led by Bogdan Bogdanov, visited IEES-BAS.
Corresponding Member Evelina Slavcheva presented the research capabilities and high scientific achievements of the Institute in the areas of development of lead-acid batteries, zinc-air batteries, zinc-nickel batteries, lithium/ lithium-ion and supercapacitors, as well as the infrastructural renovation of the IEES-BAS under projects of the Operational Programme “Science and Education for Smart Growth” and projects of the Ministry of Education and Science. Corr. mem. Slavcheva drew attention to the achievements in the construction of modern infrastructure for development activities in the field of batteries within the framework of the Hitmobil CoC, which aims to implement an active science-business link.
The guests visited the newly built laboratories under Hitmobil CoC for the research of different batteries and the test system for storing energy from RES in batteries, in which an autonomous energy system of Monbat AD is already being tested under an effective cooperation contract. The visit ended with a tour of the pilot line being built under the project at the Battery Laboratory of the Manufacturing Centre for pouch lithium-ion cells.
The European Battery Alliance (EBA250) is an institution that was established in 2017 by the European Commission with the aim of bringing back key industries to Europe by building a comprehensive, globally competitive and sustainable value chain in the EU battery sector. This is part of a broader goal to ensure strategic autonomy in a sector that is critical to the ongoing environmental and digital transition of the European economy. The organisation currently brings together more than 800 industry partners, technology companies, financial institutions and development centres – from mining to recycling – with a common ambition to build a sustainable and competitive European battery industry.
