EU’s trade chief persists in US battery minerals talks despite differences

The U.S. and European Union didn’t reach a trade agreement for essential battery minerals on Tuesday. However, they are committed to continuing negotiations to establish a transatlantic marketplace for minerals and other components, stated the EU’s top trade official.

European Commission Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis informed reporters after bilateral discussions in Washington that there are still some outstanding issues on the European side. These include aspects of the U.S. green energy subsidy law, known as the Inflation Reduction Act, which the EU perceives as discriminatory.

The battery minerals trade agreement, aimed at enabling European firms to benefit from substantial U.S. tax credits for electric vehicles, was a pivotal agenda item at the fifth ministerial meeting of the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council.

“I will not now give specific targets or deadlines on this,” Dombrovskis said. “But in this case, we think it fits in our broader agenda of both resilient supply chains and greening of the economy because many of those critical minerals are important for the green transitions of our economies.”

Dombrovskis added that despite differences, “we are willing to continue this engagement and eventually a comprehensive agreement.”

No joint statement was issued at the conclusion of the TTC meeting, a forum initiated in 2021 to enhance collaboration on bolstering semiconductor supply chains, addressing China’s non-market trade practices, and harmonizing regulation of major tech corporations.

The two parties agreed to convene a sixth ministerial meeting in April in Belgium, anticipated to be the final one before national elections in both the EU and the U.S. later this year.

The U.S. and EU initiated battery minerals talks in March 2023 due to concerns that the Inflation Reduction Act, offering tax credits for U.S. clean energy investments, might draw projects away from Europe.

Last March, the U.S. quickly reached a minerals agreement with Japan.

There was no immediate response from a spokesperson for the U.S. Trade Representative’s office when asked for comment.

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