What happened? Continuation of Hungary’s largest investment project suspended – UPDATE: CATL reaction
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It has been reported by Hungarian news portal Telex on Thursday that the continuation of Hungary’s largest investment project, preparations for the second phase of CATL’s battery factory in Debrecen, have been suspended indefinitely.
The news portal has learnt that the decision was justified by market uncertainty resulting from Trump’s tariff threats, and that several people from the architectural team working on the design have been fired.
Largest investment project put on hold
Three years ago, in 2022, it was announced that the world’s largest battery manufacturer, the Chinese CATL would build a giant factory with a capacity of 100 gigawatt hours in Debrecen, at a cost of approximately HUF 3000 billion (EUR 7.5 billion).
Until recently, CATL was so positive about the market situation that, while the first phase was still under construction, it began preparations for the second phase. Archaeological excavations were carried out in the area concerned, and the design of the buildings was also underway, Telex wrote.
However, the portal has now learned that the company has changed its mind and suspended preparations for the construction of the second unit. It seems that the decision was prompted by the trade war launched by Trump and the resulting market uncertainty.
Telex asked CATL about the suspension of preparations for the second unit. The company wrote:
“In order to start production as soon as possible, we are currently focusing all our efforts on completing our first factory unit and launching production. A decision on the start of construction of the second production unit will be made after careful consideration, taking into account the latest innovations in battery technology and the needs of our customers.”