Britishvolt’s Northumberland gigaplant project gets UK government’s support

UK's leading investor in battery cell technologies and associated R&D Britishvolt has announced that its first full-scale EV battery Gigaplant in Northumberland is receiving support from the UK government through its Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF), delivered by the Advanced Propulsion Centre.

An in-principle offer of funding has been made through ATF, which has enabled a long-term partnership with Trixtax and abrdn that will deliver £1.7bn in private funding. The two investment companies will fund the build of the project, shell, and core, as well as to develop the associated supplier park.

"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", said Peter Rolton, Executive Chairman, Britishvolt.

"It's is the first step in creating a commercialized 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".

The company claims that the project will bring around 3,000 direct highly-skilled jobs and another 5,000+ indirect wider supply chain roles into the region. The gigaplant will build enough cells each year for over 300,000 EV battery packs, equivalent to about 25 percent of the UK's current vehicle production.

The ATF is a funding programme to create 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 Decarbonization Plan'.

Over the next few weeks, Britishvolt is expected to 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.