(ANSA) - TRIESTE - German executives are preparing to announce a new home for a lithium-ion battery plant designed to rival the output at Tesla's, Bloomsberg reported. Terra E Holding GmbH will choose one of five candidate sites in Germany or a neighbouring country next month to build its 34 gigawatt-hour battery factory. A consortium of 17 German companies has been built and won government support for the project, which will break ground at the end of 2019 and reach full capacity in 2028.

Lithium-ion batteries can help stabilize intermittent flows of wind and solar power on electricity networks. They're also projected to power millions of cars. Terra E will focus its batteries on stationary units. The bet rests on projected faster demand for lithium storage in the next decade. Global battery-making capacity is set to more than double by 2021. Asia electronics makers including LG and Samsung currently control the market. Tesla will become the world's No. 2 battery maker once it finishes building its $5 billion, 35 gigawatt-hour Gigafactory in Nevada.