Forschungszentrum Jülich Involved in Research Factory for Batteries in Münster

Jülich, 28 June 2019 – The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) announced today that Münster has been selected as the new site for the planned “Battery Production Research Centre”. In a rigorous nationwide competition, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) with Münster as its proposed location was selected over five other candidates. BMBF has allocated some € 500 million to the project, and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia has pledged an additional € 200 million. The Helmholtz Institute in Münster (HI MS) – a branch office of Forschungszentrum Jülich – is involved in the research factory. The founding director of HI MS, Prof. Martin Winter, was responsible for preparing this application. Winter is an internationally respected battery researcher and scientific director of the MEET Battery Research Centre of the University of Münster (WWU).

In addition to the involvement of HI MS, Forschungszentrum Jülich will contribute its expertise in electrochemistry and materials science to the project. “By committing ourselves to the research factory, we will make an important contribution to the industrialization of battery production in Germany,” said Prof. Harald Bolt, member of the Board of Directors of Forschungszentrum Jülich. “In partnership with RWTH Aachen University and the University of Münster, we are building on our strengths, which are internationally respected, and moving towards industrial application. As scientists from Jülich, we are also providing our outstanding expertise in the pioneering topic of solid-state batteries.”

Prof. Martin Winter
Prof. Martin Winter
Forschungszentrum Jülich / Judith Kraft

The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, which also organized the call for applications, will act as coordinator for the production research facility. The project does not just bundle the expertise of the institutions located in NRW – RWTH Aachen University, Forschungszentrum Jülich, the MEET Battery Research Centre of the University of Münster, and the Helmholtz-Institute Münster: “We faced very strong and experienced competitors,” explained Martin Winter. “The production research plant is a joint project, and we look forward to cooperating with the outstanding battery research facilities in Germany and beyond. Together we will make the battery cell production centre a success story.”

More information:

Helmholtz Institute Münster (IEK-12/HI MS)

Münster Electrochemical Energy Technology (MEET)

Press release from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (in German)

Press release from the state of NRW (in German)

Contact:

Prof. Martin Winter
Tel: +49 251 83-36720
Email: meet.pr@uni-muenster.de

Press contact:

Tobias Schlößer, press officer
Forschungszentrum Jülich
Tel: +49 2461 61-1841
Email: e.zeiss@fz-juelich.de

Last Modified: 22.05.2022