US-based automotive battery pack remanufacturer Spiers New Technologies (SNT) is opening a reman hub in Europe. The new location in Ede, the Netherlands, is designed to tap into what SNT sees as rapid growth in European electric vehicle (EV) sales and is expected to be fully operational shortly. “We can’t afford to ignore the European market,” says CEO Dirk Spiers. “Our new Dutch facility lets us serve that market and lets European automotive OEMs access battery remanufacturing technology that has been pioneered by SNT in the US.” SNT says the total market for EVs in Europe last year grew by 38.7% from 2016 to 287,270 cars - or 1.4% of the total European new car market. “The growth rate of EV sales is expected to accelerate in coming years in response to generous local incentives and changes in European consumer preferences,” the company says.
However, SNT, which has its HQ in Oklahoma City, acknowledges that there are issues which must be ironed out. For example, while much of SNT’s business involves managing the logistics of moving high voltage batteries by land, sea and air, the laws governing this differ between the US and Europe. “While the vehicles and batteries are comparable on a global level, regulations and economics are different between US and Europe,” says Gert-Jan van der Have, SNT managing director of Spiers New Technologies BV. “But sooner or later every battery in an EV requires removal, analysis, service and recycling. There are going to be a lot of EVs in Europe. We have great hopes for the European battery remanufacturing market.”
