Stocks to buy

3 Stocks to Buy to Play Europe’s EV Battery Boom

The E.U. aims to attract EV battery manufacturers to reduce reliance on Chinese counterparts.That’s got me thinking about high potential EV battery stocks.

According to SkyQuest, a leading growth consultant, the Europe EV battery market is expected to reach $9.1 billion by 2028.

“Germany held the largest market revenue share in the European EV batteries market in 2022 and is projected to maintain its dominance throughout the forecast period,” SkyQuest’s press release stated. “This can be attributed to the several gig factories that are planned to be installed in the country, leading to increased production capacity and driving the market growth.”

This growth is a big reason investor should consider Europe’s EV Battery Stocks. Europe’s EV market outpaces the US, with over 1.04 million BEV registrations in 2021. This indicates a higher demand for European-made BEV batteries to meet the growing vehicle sales.

Given this enthusiasm, here are three EV battery stocks that are more European-centric.

BRK-B Berkshire Hathaway $335.29
IBDRY Iberdrola $49.45
STLA Stellantis $16.24

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B)

Source: IgorGolovniov / Shutterstock.com

It’s not easy trying to find direct investments in European EV battery stocks. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t ways to play this market.

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK-B) owns a 9.9% stake in BYD Co. (OTCMKTS:BYDDY), a global leader in electric batteries and EV manufacturing.

BYD is considering manufacturing EV batteries in Europe, with France among the potential locations the company is assessing. Spanish newspapers suggested in April that BYD could be drawn to Spain due to PERTE, the government’s revamped grant and subsidies program aimed at attracting EV companies.

When supplying Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), and being a large company like BYD, having factories in all regions of product sales is logical.

Additionally, it doesn’t hurt that BYD is very profitable. In Q1, its net profit surged to nearly $600 million, a 411% year-over-year increase, driven by an 80% rise in revenue to 120.2 billion Chinese Yuan ($16.9 billion).

Iberdrola (IBDRY)

Source: Shutterstock

I promised to stick to U.S.-listed stocks, but I couldn’t help myself with Iberdrola (OTCMKTS:IBDRY), a world leader in clean energy. It began its move into renewable energy over 20 years ago. Notably, the company supplies energy to over 100 million people, and works on renewable energy projects on four continents, including the U.S.

In the five years between 2020 and 2025, it will spend 75 billion euros ($80.2 billion) on the energy transition. Electric batteries are a part of this transition.

In October 2022, the company announced PERSEO’s investment in Basquevolt, Spain’s solid-state battery initiative. The initiative’s goal is to start producing battery cells in 2027, with the aim of getting to 10 gigawatt-hours (GWh) capacity.

“Basquevolt aims to become the European leader in solid-state batteries,” stated the October 2022 press release.

“Specifically, Basquevolt aims to develop – in a sustainable way – the best materials and battery cells to enable the mass deployment of electric transport, stationary energy storage – including hybridisation with hydrogen-gas systems – and advanced portable devices.”

In 2022, Iberdrola had a net profit of 4.34 billion euros ($4.64 billion). Impressively, that’s nearly 12% higher than in 2021, when the company brought in 53.9 billion euros ($57.7 billion) in revenue.

It pays to have big investors like Iberdrola when looking to build new technology.

Stellantis (STLA)

Source: Antonello Marangi / Shutterstock.com

Automotive Cells Company is a joint venture between Stellantis (NYSE:STLA), Mercedes Benz, and SAFT, the advanced-technology battery business of Total Energies (NYSE:TTE), one of the world’s largest energy companies.

ACC is expected to invest over 7 billion euros ($7.5 billion) to build three European gigafactories that will each be able to manufacture 40 GWh capacity by 2030. The first gigafactory in France at Billy-Berclau/Douvrin will start production by the end of 2023, with full production anticipated a year later. ACC is spending 850 million euros ($909.6 million) on the first plant.

“The start of battery production at the same location where Stellantis used to produce – and still produces – internal combustion engines are a strong symbol. … The ACC Gigafactory will enable Stellantis’ electric vehicles to be equipped with high-tech batteries, serving clean, safe, and affordable mobility for all”, Stellantis’ CEO Carlos Tavares said in ACC’s May 30 press release.

In 2025, it will open a second gigafactory in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and a third in Termoli, Italy, in 2026.

Stellantis is in good company.

On the date of publication, Will Ashworth did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines

Will Ashworth has written about investments full-time since 2008. Publications where he’s appeared include InvestorPlace, The Motley Fool Canada, Investopedia, Kiplinger, and several others in both the U.S. and Canada. He particularly enjoys creating model portfolios that stand the test of time. He lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia.