Axpo Polska provides Johnson Matthey with green energy for components to electric car batteries

01.02.2021 - Axpo is further expanding its business activities related to renewable energies: The company’s Polish branch will provide green electricity to Johnson Matthey (JM), a leader in sustainable technologies, for a battery cathode materials plant in Konin, Poland. Using 100% renewable energy by means of a full supply contract will significantly reduce the plant’s carbon footprint and support Poland’s shift to a lower carbon economy.

JM’s new factory in Konin, currently under construction, is expected to commence commissioning in 2022 to supply automotive platforms for production in 2024. The plant will initially supply 10,000 MT per year of its advanced high nickel cathode material eLNO^®, equivalent to some 100,000 electric vehicles, with a phased investment plan over the coming years.

As a sustainable technologies company with a vision for a world that’s cleaner and healthier JM’s priority is to reduce the carbon footprint of the plant in Konin. Thanks to the agreement with Axpo Polska, the new plant in Konin will be provided with 100% electricity from renewable sources from Day 1 of production.

Grzegorz Biliński, Managing Director Axpo Polska, comments: “We see an ever increasing demand of energy-intensive industrial companies in Poland to cover their electricity consumption from renewable energy sources. With this full supply contract, Axpo Polska supports JM when it comes to making its production processes greener and playing its part in the future of electric vehicles.”

Poland is the largest electricity market in Central Eastern Europe, but has historically had one of the lowest shares of renewable energy in its electricity generation mix. Currently, demand is still predominantly met from coal-fired power plants. But the country has ambitious targets: By 2050, 52% of the Polish power generation is forecast to come from wind, solar and biomass.

Axpo has been present in the Polish market for 20 years, becoming one of the largest independent off-takers of renewable energy. Clients in Poland, can benefit from tailor-made PPAs and power supply solutions based on structured long term contracts, power balancing and forecasting, as well as property rights and guarantees of origin trading, all provided by Axpo. Within the past 6 years, Axpo has also expanded its client portfolio to small and medium sized businesses (SME) and now provides services for 15.000 of these companies in the country.