Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited（宁德时代，CATL）began trial production on two battery-cell lines at its Debrecen plant in Hungary on September 22, moving its largest planned manufacturing base outside China into equipment and process validation. The company has not announced when series production will begin.
CATL announced the project in 2022 with a planned investment of €7.34 billion and annual capacity of 100 GWh once all facilities are ready. Construction of the first cell building began in summer 2023, and equipment installation was completed by spring 2026. The site obtained an occupancy permit in August, and CATL said it had met the conditions attached to its integrated pollution prevention and control permit before starting the trial.
The Debrecen operation has already been producing battery modules since autumn 2024. CATL reported cumulative output of 537,000 modules before cell trial production began. Adding cell manufacturing will bring another stage of battery production to the site, but the eventual scale will depend on the factory’s ramp-up.
The plant is intended to serve European automakers with production in Hungary and the surrounding region. Mercedes-Benz previously identified the Debrecen facility as the first and largest customer for its initial capacity, saying it would supply cells to European production sites in Germany and Hungary. CATL has also highlighted the site’s proximity to automakers including BMW, Stellantis and Volkswagen. Those manufacturers’ presence in the region supports the local-to-local supply rationale, although CATL has not detailed customer allocations for the new cell lines.
The start of trial production follows regulatory scrutiny and local concerns about the site. CATL said county authorities conducted regular inspections before issuing the occupancy permit and confirmed that deficiencies identified during the permitting process had been addressed. The company also said employee health, safety and environmental indicators would continue to be monitored during the trial, with results submitted to authorities.
For CATL, Debrecen extends its European footprint from module assembly into cell manufacturing. If the planned capacity is completed and production ramps successfully, the site could place more of the battery supply chain near European vehicle factories. The current milestone is a test of manufacturing readiness; output at commercial scale and its contribution to regional supply remain ahead.
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