UK’s First Gigafactory Planned for 2023 Battery Production

Paul Myles

TU-Editor

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11th December 2020

The UK’s first vehicle battery ‘gigafactory’ will be built in the nation’s deprived North East of England.

Battery company Britishvolt has acquired rights to a site in Blyth Northumberland and intends to begin construction in Summer 2021. Automotive grade lithium-ion batteries are planned to be in production by the end of 2023.

Brexit

Its investment in the scheme of $3.4Bn is ironically the largest industrial investment in the area since Nissan’s arrival at Sunderland in 1984. The project may go some way to offset the expected economic devastation for the area should Nissan hold to its promise to close its UK factories in the event of a no-deal Brexit with the European Union.

Britishvolt says that by the final phase of the project in 2027 it will be employing up to 3,000 skilled people, producing more than 300,000 lithium-ion batteries for the UK automotive industry. It will further provide up to 5,000 jobs in the wider supply chain.

Hard work

Britishvolt CEO, Orral Nadjari “Now we can really start the hard work and begin producing lithium-ion batteries for future electrified vehicles in just three years. It is crucial for the UK automotive industry and for the entire economy that we are able to power the future. Blyth meets all of our exacting requirements and could be tailor made. It is on the doorstep of major transport links, easily accessible renewable energy and the opportunity for a co-located supply chain, meets our target to make our gigafactory the world’s cleanest and greenest battery facility.”

— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in London. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_