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Automotive and Batteries trade mission to Detroit

Automotive and Batteries trade mission to Detroit

Are you active in making the automotive sector more sustainable? Or specifically in battery development and technology? And would you like to explore your market opportunities in the United States and find cooperation partners there? Then apply for this trade mission no later than 25 June at the time of The Battery Show trade fair.

Why Detroit

The region around Detroit, Michigan, is the centre of the automotive industry in the United States. The long history of the industry in Michigan gives a stable base to many companies and knowledge institutions active in mobility.

  • Major OEMs such as Ford and General Motors (GM) and their suppliers (such as Magna) are all headquartered in this region.
  • Companies like Google and Argo AI are also based in the region.
  • Development of the battery industry is necessary for electrification of the mobility sector. This industry has therefore become an important part of the Detroit ecosystem.

Trade show The Battery Show

We are organising this trade mission around North America's biggest event in advanced battery technology: The Battery Show. This trade show will take place in Detroit from 7 to 10 October 2024. In previous years, the trade show attracted more than 1,150 participants and some 20,000 visitors. At the show, you can visit a Lead Pavilion, a Recycling Pavilion and an expo on electric transport.

The Battery Show covers the following five tracks:

  1. Development: such as NextGen technology, raw material supply chain, and recycling. Read the English-language report 'Battery value chain analysis' on rijkswaterstaat.nl.
  2. Battery In-Use: production, safety and more.
  3. EV (Electric Vehicle) Development: such as laws and regulations, investment in Research & Development, foreign competition and cooperation.
  4. EV In-Use: mainly design and innovation of electric and hybrid vehicles, charging infrastructure and practical experience.
  5. New applications: such as heavy duty applications and fixed energy storage.

Buyers, representatives and decision-makers from the global battery industry visit The Battery Show. These include companies such as Ford, Tesla, Rivian, Samsung, CATL, A124 and BorgWarner.

Focus on sustainable mobility

The theme of this mission is the sustainability of the automotive industry and the further development of battery technology. These include:

  • recycling of essential materials;
  • Battery waste (processing ‘black mass’);
  • Heavy duty batteries;
  • NextGen battery technology (improved materials and production techniques).

We will select from these sub-themes later on, based on the participating companies.

For who?

This mission is open to Dutch start-ups, scale-ups, SMEs, governments and knowledge institutions.

It is interesting for those who want to enter the US market with sustainable mobility or with (new) battery technologies and materials, or do more business there.

Are you an entrepreneurial woman with international ambitions? The government is committed to increasing diversity and therefore also specifically encourages female entrepreneurs to do international business. It does so through the Growth Across Borders campaign. After all, companies that do business internationally are more productive, innovative and successful. By joining this mission, you will expand your network and increase your international opportunities.

We take a maximum of 30 people. A maximum of 2 people per organisation can participate.

Programme

The final programme for this mission is still being finalised. That programme will include:

  • b2b meetings;
  • visit to trade show The Battery Show with targeted visits to companies and pavilions;
  • company visits in the Detroit area;
  • networking receptions;
  • in-depth sector study (deep-dives);
  • time for in-house appointments;

A draft programme can be found on the RVO website.

Participation and costs

The cost for participation in this trade mission is €500 excluding VAT per organisation at a maximum of 2 people.

Travel, accommodation and possible additional costs (such as for individual transport) are at your own expense.

Register

Sign up for the Automotive and Batteries trade mission to Detroit. This can be done until Tuesday 25 June 2024 at the latest.

A maximum of 2 persons per organisation may participate. Each person should apply separately.

Sign up

Organisation

The Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland (RVO) is organising this mission with the Dutch consulate general in Chicago, RAI Automotive Industry NL and Brainport Eindhoven.