Britishvolt says it is in “advanced discussions” with UK and EU OEMS, concerning EV battery uptake, but is unable to reveal specifics of its negotiations.
The news comes hot on the heels of remarks by Nissan COO, Ashwani Gupta not ruling out buying batteries from other sources, including from the Britishvolt gigafactory being planned for Blyth in North East England, if demand for electric cars increased.
Nissan makes around 30,000 Leaf electric cars at its Sunderland factory, most with a locally-sourced 40 kilowatt-hour battery. They remain tariff-free when exported to the EU. However, a higher-range battery is currently imported from Japan.
“The accelerated uptake of electrified vehicles in Europe is driving extremely high interest in Britishvolt’s future products and technologies,” said a Britishvolt statement sent to just-auto.
“We are in advanced discussions with many UK and EU-based OEMs, who are looking for high volumes of batteries and products that will give them competitive advantages, to lead the electric revolution.
“However we cannot currently reveal details of our discussions. Our project remains on track with [the] first battery on production due at the end of 2023.”
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By GlobalDataRemarks by Gupta suggest Nissan remains highly committed to its UK plant and will increase investment in electrified technology manufacturing in the UK to meet post-Brexit EU trade rules of origin requirements.
More battery production will be added to the Envision plant next to Nissan’s Sunderland vehicle manufacturing plant.
