UK Likely To Witness The Development Of A £7bn Battery Gigafactory

The UK is bidding to build a new $8 billion (£7bn) lithium battery gigafactory, a huge boost for the UK's EV market. The £7 billion factory will produce some of the most promising and disruptive battery technologies, offering huge improvements in terms of cost, safety, and fast-charging capability in EVs.

The global energy transition has prompted countries like the UK, US and Germany to double down their support for domestic electric vehicle markets.

The UK launched its Automotive Transformation Fund last year, investing £1bn ($1.15 billion) into domestic industrial electric vehicle supply chain projects.

Taiwanese lithium battery maker is evaluating 90 sites across countries including France, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and the UK and the factory is expected to create thousands of job opportunities.

Taipei-based ProLogium secured $326 million (£282 million) last year in a funding round to expand its global electric vehicle battery manufacturing capacity.

In an official press release issued by the company on the 6th of September, Mr. Vincent Yang, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of ProLogium Technology said, “For most Asian companies actively going abroad, one of the keys to success is a solid foundation rooted in strategic planning.” He also added that “Site selection requires not only the right technology and solutions for that market but also in-depth knowledge of local market demands and trends. We are happy to leverage our advantage as our manufacturing readiness has been demonstrated with our first gigafactory poised to enter production next year.”

The company is looking for a few of the key issues including government incentives, power safety, a pool of competent labour, and an existing supply chain.

Gilles Normand, European Vice President for International Development also said that “During my frontline visits to all possible sites, I discovered very talented people and highly motivated people. I was pleased to see the enthusiasm and understanding of our technology and future industrialization plans. Of course, it will be a difficult process to finally choose the site selected.”

Upon Completion, ProLogium’s new plant is anticipated to be one of Europe’s largest plants with an ultimate capacity of 120 gigawatt hours.