Britishvolt may soon have to file for insolvency, according to media reports. The company is said to have asked the British government for a financing advance of 30 million pounds. However, this was refused, so now the existence of the company is apparently at stake.
Britishvolt is known to be planning a battery cell factory in Blyth in the northeast of England and received a funding commitment of 100 million pounds from the British government for the construction of the production facility earlier this year, making the announcement somewhat surprising. This government cash injection should pave the way for private financing. Funds amounting to 1.7 billion pounds are said to have been pledged by investors Tritax and Abrdn, among others.
However, the government’s funding is linked to the fulfilment of certain criteria and has reportedly not yet been paid out yet. Britishvolt is now said to have asked the government for an advance of 30 million pounds to continue the project, which has already begun. However, the new business minister Grant Shapps has refused this, according to reports.
The BBC bases this information on statements by Ian Lavery, the Labour MP for the Wansbeck district, where the plant is currently being built. According to the report, Lavery spoke with the chairman of Britishvolt on Monday. He said that in light of the government’s cancellation, the latter had expressed that “it is very likely that Britishvolt will go into receivership.”
Britishvolt has struggled to find investors to fund the construction of its cell factory in Blyth. Plans have had to be postponed several times. Originally, the plant was scheduled to start up at the end of next year. Subsequently, commissioning was first moved to the end of 2024 and then to mid-2025. The reasons given for the latest postponement were “difficult external economic headwinds, including galloping inflation and rising interest rates.”
Back in August, Britishvolt announced the resignation of its founder and CEO Orral Nadjari. Even at that time, there were reports of funding problems. The project was first announced in mid-2020, and Blyth was confirmed as the location of the battery factory in December of that year. Since then, the company has entered into numerous raw material and development partnerships, including with German companies such as Siemens and Manz. Construction work has been underway since the fall of 2021.
bbc.com, news.sky.com
Keyword: Britishvolt in financial straights