- The UK government has secured around £1 billion worth of investment to help progress a new AESC EV battery gigafactory, set to open in the North of England in Sunderland.
- When running at full capacity, the new gigafactory is set to manufacture enough batteries every year to provide for 100,000 new EVs.
- The milestone helps cement the UK’s position as one of the leaders within Europe for EV battery technology, with a Tata Group battery gigafactory also set to open in the country next year.
Sunderland EV battery gigafactory gets another boost
The new plant will be the second to be built by Japan’s AESC in Sunderland, being strategically located close to Nissan’s own Sunderland car plant – which, itself, will produce upcoming electric models such as the third-generation Nissan Leaf and first all-electric Juke. This new AESC battery plant will play a part in directly supplying EV batteries to this nearby Nissan facility. With the facility set to be able to produce enough batteries to supply 100,000 EVs every year, the factory will help increase the country’s current battery production capacity six-fold. For context, Tata Group’s upcoming Somerset-based battery gigafactory is expected to supply enough batteries annually to produce 500,000 electric carts.
Of the new £1 billion worth of investment, £680 million has come from banks such as Standard Chartered, HSBC, SMBC Group, Societe Generale and BBVA, with the National Wealth Fund and UK Export Finance providing the financial guarantees. The remaining £320 million came from both new equity from AESC and private financing. In addition to the investment, the government has also committed £150 million worth of grant funding through its Automotive Transformation Fund.
Upon opening, the plant is expected to create 1,000 new jobs for the area.
Shoichi Matsumoto, CEO of AESC, commented:
“This investment marks a key milestone in AESC’s ongoing efforts to support the UK’s path towards decarbonisation and the expansion of its EV market. Through close collaboration with strategic partners, we strive to accelerate this transition while creating high-quality local jobs and building resilient, sustainable supply chain. We are honoured to contribute to the development of low-carbon economy with our advanced battery technologies.”
UK Business and Trade Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, added:
“We’re backing our world-class car industry, and this investment is yet another vote of confidence in the North East’s thriving auto manufacturing hub which will secure a thousand well-paid jobs and boost prosperity across the region. Our modern Industrial Strategy will drive this growth even further, powering our high-potential sectors like advanced manufacturing so we can deliver jobs and investment in every corner of the UK and make our Plan for Change a reality.”
