Stung by Asian dominance, Germany pours cash into EV battery ventures

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany has earmarked 1 billion euros (920.17 million pounds) to support a consortium looking to produce electric car battery cells and plans to fund a research facility to develop next-generation solid-state batteries, three sources told Reuters.The measures, expected to be announced next week, are designed to reduce the dependence of German carmakers on Asian electric vehicle (EV) battery suppliers and protect German jobs at risk from the shift away from combustion..