Brussels, Nov. 3, 2025 (Lusa) - A Portuguese project to build a lithium battery factory is among the 61 selected by the European Commission for funding to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, it was announced on Monday.
In total, the EU executive is today providing funding of €2.9 billion for the 61 cutting-edge, zero-impact technology projects.
In Portugal, the NEXTGEN CAM project was chosen, dedicated to the production of active LNMO (lithium-nickel-manganese oxide) cathode material, used in the cathodes of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, essential for electric vehicles and energy storage.
According to the Commission, NEXTGEN CAM will be a pioneering industrial unit in this type of production, contributing to the European battery value chain and the energy transition.
The funding comes from the Innovation Fund, using revenues from the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), and NEXTGEN CAM falls into the ‘clean manufacturing’ category, for projects with capital expenditure of more than €2.5 million, centred on the manufacture of components for renewable energies, energy storage, heat pumps and hydrogen production.
In this category, 11 projects are selected for grants, which in series will receive €774 million and include projects from the following sectors: renewable energy component manufacturing (6), battery recycling projects (4) and an energy-intensive industry component project.
These grants follow a first call for proposals for zero impact technologies, launched in December 2024, to strengthen Europe's technological leadership and accelerate the creation of innovative decarbonisation solutions.
All the selected projects cover 19 industrial sectors in 18 countries, and the focus is on energy-intensive industries, renewable energy, energy storage, mobility, zero-net-emissions buildings, clean technology manufacturing, and industrial carbon management.
Brussels maintains that the 61 projects have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by cutting around 221 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent during their first decade of operation, a figure comparable to the annual emissions of 9.9 million European cars.
This reduction will directly support the EU's goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050, and the amount of funding for each selected project will be defined in the first half of 2026.
IG/ADB // ADB.
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