KATOWICE, Poland, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- Poland is looking to turn one of its old industrial heartlands into a new center for electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing, as the European auto industry shifts toward electrification, digital technologies and more localized supply chains.
The planned EV hub in Jaworzno in Silesia, southern Poland, will combine production, supplier development and research. Discussions at this week's New Mobility Congress 2026 in Katowice point to an ambition that goes beyond a single assembly plant: retaining more of the technology, skills and industrial value created as Europe's automotive landscape changes.
EUROPE'S EV SHIFT
Europe's transition is gathering pace. The European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) said 1.64 million battery-electric cars were registered in the EU in the first eight months of 2026, up 44.9 percent year-on-year. Their market share rose to 21.7 percent from 15.8 percent a year earlier.
This market shift is being matched by policy. In July, the European Commission proposed raising electrification from about 23 percent of EU energy use today to 46 percent by 2040, with transport among the priority sectors.
A 1.5-billion-euro (about 1.71 billion U.S. dollars) Battery Booster Facility launched in June is aimed at helping battery-cell production scale up within the European Economic Area.
The issue is no longer simply how many research projects Europe can fund, said Olivier Silla, head of the Department for Sustainable Networks and Investments at the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA).
"The challenge is not simply to pilot good ideas. It is to build value chains, infrastructure, skills and manufacturing capabilities in Europe," he said.
WHY POLAND, WHY SILESIA
Poland is entering the transition with a large manufacturing base but a relatively young EV market. Battery-electric cars made up about 5.1 percent of new-car registrations in the first eight months of 2026, far below the EU average.
Nevertheless, the country is also firmly embedded in Europe's logistics network. Poland recorded 381 billion ton-kilometers of road freight transport in 2025, or 20.2 percent of the EU total, the highest share among member states, according to Eurostat.
These strengths are concentrated in Silesia, home to a long-established automotive workforce and supplier base. Jaworzno's industrial zone lies near the A4 and S1 corridors and is connected by rail to the E30 route, placing it on freight routes serving Germany as well as the Czech Republic, Slovakia and other Central European markets.
BEYOND ASSEMBLY
The longer-term value of new EV investment will depend on how much expertise and industrial capability can be concentrated locally.
Cyprian Gronkiewicz, CEO of ElectroMobility Poland, said a genuine automotive hub needs three things -- large-scale manufacturing, a local supplier base and R&D capacity. What matters, he said, is what remains once a model reaches the end of its production cycle -- engineering teams, suppliers and intellectual property.
Poland's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Affairs Krzysztof Gawkowski placed talent at the center of the equation. "In the next phase of mobility, the advantage will belong to countries that are more digitalized, have stronger skills and can keep highly qualified people at home," he said.
The Jaworzno plan therefore carries significance beyond one Polish industrial project. For Poland, the next step is to turn an established manufacturing base into a deeper EV ecosystem built around suppliers, engineering, research and technology, and to secure a larger role in Europe's evolving automotive value chain. ■