BEIJING, June 27 (Xinhua) -- China's battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd (CATL) will invest up to 1.8 billion euros (about 2.05 billion U.S. dollars) to expand its European production and research base, China Daily reported Thursday.

The company will build a lithium-ion battery production base and a center for product research, development and testing in Germany, said the newspaper, citing a statement of CATL.

The investment will amount to a maximum of 1.8 billion euros, up from the previous plan of 240 million euros last year.

Construction is estimated to last no less than 60 months, and the project will cover around 70 hectares, the statement said.

According to CATL's earlier announcement, the project will start operation in 2021, and have the capacity of over 14 GWh by 2022.

Established in 2011, CATL has set up branches in countries including the United States, Canada and Japan.