EV battery pioneer, Britishvolt, the UK’s foremost investor in battery cell technologies and associated R&D to develop homegrown intellectual property, is powering ahead with its historic plans for its first full-scale electric-vehicle Gigaplant in Northumberland and is delighted that the project is receiving support from the Government through its Automotive Transformation Fund, delivered by the Advanced Propulsion Centre.
At the same time BV announce that Tritax and abrdn are becoming its partner to fund the build of the project, shell and core, as well as to develop the associated supplier park. Tritax is the leading investor in UK and European logistics real estate and is joining BV in partnership with abrdn’s global real assets and investment capabilities.
The ATF is a funding programme with the aim of creating a sustainable, zero emission automotive supply chain in the UK. The fund is an important mechanism to deliver the UK Government’s 10-point plan for a green industrial revolution and its recent Transport Decarbonisation Plan.
Over the next few weeks BV will make a series of follow up announcements including customer MoUs and R&D collaborations, relationships with blue chip UK automotive sports car brands and technology releases.
Peter Rolton, Britishvolt Executive Chairman:
“This announcement is a major step in putting the UK at the forefront of the global energy transition, unlocking huge private sector investment that will develop the technology and skills required for Britain to play its part in the next industrial revolution.
The news is the first step in creating a commercialised battery ecosystem, that perfectly aligns with the existing R&D ecosystem. Britishvolt will be the anchor for attracting further sections of the supply chain, be it refining or recycling, to co-locate on the Britishvolt site. This not only shortens supply chains but also allows for partners to access the abundance of renewable energy on site to truly power low carbon, sustainable battery production.
It will also allow us to catapult our unique tailormade business proposition on a global scale, with sites already selected for development in other countries.
I’m especially proud that this is such a major boost for Northumberland – the county of my birth – bringing around 3,000 direct highly-skilled jobs and another 5,000+ indirect wider supply chain roles into the region.
This is a truly historic day and marks the start of a truly exciting move towards a low carbon future. One with Britishvolt batteries at the very centre of that strategy.”
According to APC research, based on its unique relationships with vehicle manufacturers, by 2030 the UK will need over 90GWh per annum of batteries for cars and light commercials alone and represents over 11% of the total demand across Europe.
Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, said:
“Britishvolt’s plan to build a new Gigafactory in Northumberland is a strong testament to the skilled workers of the North East and the UK’s place at the helm of the global green industrial revolution.
“Backed by government and private sector investment, this new battery factory will boost the production of electric vehicles in the UK, whilst levelling up opportunity and bringing thousands of new highly-skilled jobs to communities in our industrial heartlands.”
The project will create [c]+3,000 direct high-skilled jobs and another 5,000+ indirect roles in the wider UK supply chain to build enough cells each year for over 300,000 electric vehicle battery packs.
Kwasi Kwarteng, Business Secretary, said:
“Today’s news is a major boost for Britain and a resounding vote of confidence in the North East economy.
“Britishvolt’s planned Gigafactory will not only enable the UK to fully capture the benefits of a booming electric vehicle market, but will bring thousands of highly-skilled, well-paid jobs to the North East.
“In this global race between countries to secure vital battery production, this Government is proud to make the investment necessary to ensure UK’s retains its place as one of the best locations in the world for auto manufacturing.”
It also underscores the Government’s ambitions for the UK to be a world leader in the battery industry, having already established a unique and impressive ecosystem including WMG, University of Warwick, the Advanced Propulsion Centre, The Faraday Institution and UK Battery Industrialistion Centre.
James Dunlop, CEO, Tritax Group, said:
“Tritax and abrdn are delighted to have been chosen to partner with Britishvolt to fund and deliver this at Blyth. The £3.8bn scheme will create a sustainable and green powered ecosystem for UK battery and EV manufacturing. Blyth is mission critical infrastructure of national importance. The development will help realise the UK Government’s commitment to deliver British made batteries for the automotive sector in a world leading energy cluster in the Northeast. We have a strong track record of identifying operators and projects at the epicentre of structural change and as such are proud to be working alongside Britishvolt, the UK Government and a world class professional team to unlock a greener future for UK plc”
The transformation and development of the 93-hectare site is underway by Britishvolt’s construction partner ISG. Advanced works are progressing to support the design process and the significant onsite infrastructure required to deliver a project of this scale and complexity.
