Győrffy Dóra

Industrial Policy and EV Battery Manufacturing in Hungary and Sweden

In light of the increased role of electric vehicle (EV) battery production in the Hungarian economy with significant government support, the study asks how well this industrial policy serves Hungary's long-term economic convergence. To answer this question, the Hungarian EV battery strategy is examined in the context of the historical evolution of industrial policy thinking. A comparative perspective is provided by the analysis of the Swedish EV battery strategy. The main argument of the paper is that the Hungarian approach to EV battery manufacturing is most closely related to the thinking of the classical socialist system, while the Swedish example illustrates the industrial policy ideas of the 21st century. The two cases have one common lesson: there is no tradeoff between economic development and environmental protection - while the two objectives reinforce each other in Sweden due to its comparative advantages, the Hungarian battery industry, which amplifies the countrys comparative disadvantages, can be considered harmful both from the point of view of economic convergence and from the point of view of the environment.

LXX. évf., 2023. March (245 - 273. O.), DOI:10.18414/KSZ.2023.3.245, Study

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