Latest news with #Volklec
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
UK battery start-up Volklec unveils plans for £1bn gigafactory
Volklec, a UK start-up supported by former Britishvolt investors, is collaborating with a Chinese supplier to establish a 10GWh gigafactory with an investment of more than £1bn ($1.26bn) . The Coventry-based company, backed by Frontive Group, plans to avoid past pitfalls of other battery manufacturers by securing customers and batteries first, before moving to construction. The gigafactory project aims to revitalise the UK's battery manufacturing sector. Volklec has signed a technology and knowledge transfer agreement with China-based Far East Battery, a subsidiary of Far East Smart Energy, to leverage its engineering, manufacturing expertise and raw material supplies. Volklec will manufacture advanced lithium-ion batteries in the UK. A delivery partnership team of specialists from FEB in China will support production, due to begin later in 2025, from Volklec's launch base at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC). The company aims to raise £1bn to construct a 10 gigawatt hours (GWh) factory, creating 1,000 jobs by 2030. If successful, it would become the country's only large-scale independent battery manufacturer following UK battery manufacturer Britishvolt's collapse in 2023. Volklec executive director Phil Popham stated: 'There is an urgent need for new independent manufacturers to secure the battery supply chain in the UK. There is no greater transformation today than the electric revolution in transport and mobility, and the British start-up scene is thriving, from motorsport to heavy-duty off-highway and most things in between. 'But there is a substantial gap in the supply chain. The UK is particularly strong in the specialist and high-performance sectors which need surety of supply with quality and reliability. Our mission is to help these innovators thrive.' Volklec plans to initially begin producing cylindrical nickel-rich battery cells for e-bikes and energy storage, followed by the production of power cells for the automotive, aerospace and marine sectors. Volklec will use UKBIC's existing 100 megawatt hours line to manufacture the energy cell, with a further 1GWh line to be installed by the end of 2026 for power cell production. The company is in negotiations with potential customers, intending to serve low-volume manufacturers who are unable to build their own gigafactories. "UK battery start-up Volklec unveils plans for £1bn gigafactory" was originally created and published by Power Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
Reuters
26-02-2025
- Automotive
- Reuters
UK startup Volklec to make EV batteries with licensed Chinese technology
LONDON, Feb 26 (Reuters) - British startup Volklec has reached a licensing agreement with China's Far East Battery (FEB) to use its technology to make batteries for energy storage and electric vehicles, it said on Wednesday. FEB, a unit of Far East Smarter Energy Co ( opens new tab, will also provide engineers and other support to help Volklec scale up production at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC), a partly government-funded battery factory in Coventry. The Chinese company will also provide Volklec with access to its supply chain to lower costs. European battery makers have struggled with the challenges of developing a viable chemistry for EV batteries while also raising funds and scaling up in an industry dominated by China. After prominent failures like Britishvolt and Sweden's Northvolt, which is undergoing restructuring, industry experts predict more European battery firms will need Chinese cash and expertise to scale up. Volklec said in late 2025 it will start producing "energy cell" batteries for e-scooters, e-bikes and EV chargers as well as energy storage, with a "power cell" for EVs coming in the second half of 2026. UK investment company Frontive Group has committed 20 million pounds ($25.3 million) for production of the energy cell. Volklec executive director Phil Popham told Reuters the company will need to raise 80 million pounds for a new 1 gigawatt hour (GWh) production line at the UKBIC for the power cell. Volklec is talking to a number of automakers about using the cells, he said, declining to disclose which companies. Popham said FEB has supplied cells for about a million EVs so far. "Volklec's approach is all about getting to market quickly using proven technology to give confidence to customers and investors," Popham said. "We know where we're going to buy it, where we'll produce it and what we'll produce."
Bloomberg
26-02-2025
- Automotive
- Bloomberg
UK Battery Maker Adopts Chinese Tech to Avoid Britishvolt Fate
After the collapse of Britishvolt Ltd., another startup is having a go at making batteries in the UK. This one, though, doesn't plan on building its own in-house technology or racing to build a giant battery factory. Coventry-based Volklec has reached a license deal with the battery arm of China's Far East Smarter Energy Co. that will allow it to start producing batteries for products like electric bikes later this year at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre in its home city. The UK startup will use the Chinese firm's technology to begin making cells next year for cars and other sectors such as aerospace and marine craft, which are also adopting electric power.
The Guardian
26-02-2025
- Automotive
- The Guardian
UK battery firm says it has learned from others' errors as it licenses Chinese tech
A startup has said it has learned from Britain's faltering attempts to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles, as it signed a deal to license technology from an established Chinese firm. Coventry-based Volklec plans to manufacture batteries for cars, boats, construction vehicles and aircraft using technology from China's Far East Battery (FEB), a maker of batteries mainly for electric bikes. Volklec has appointed former Lotus Cars chief executive Phil Popham as executive director to lead its efforts. Popham said the company would take a low-risk approach to avoid problems that have hampered other British attempts to build EV batteries at scale. The startup will aim to start producing batteries this year at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC), a part government-funded research centre in the West Midlands. It will then find a site to build a factory making batteries with a cumulative capacity of 10 gigawatt hours (GWh) a year. The UK has struggled to attract investment in battery manufacturing. There are two companies with 'gigafactories' in the UK: the Chinese-owned AESC, which supplies Nissan's Sunderland factory from a site next door, and Agratas, owned by the Indian conglomerate Tata, which is building a factory in Somerset to supply batteries to JLR, the maker of Jaguar and Land Rover cars. Those factories are aimed at producing batteries with total capacities of 38GWh and 40GWh respectively – enough for hundreds of thousands of cars apiece. However, Popham said there was a need for a UK battery company to supply other businesses that did not have enough demand for a gigafactory on their own. 'We believe there is a robust market for an independent British manufacturer,' he said. The partnership would make Volklec dependent on its Chinese partner at a time of increased geopolitical tensions, although the UK chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has sought investment from China to help meet growth targets. Several prominent British automotive startups have shown promise before crashing into bankruptcy, including the bankrupt van maker Arrival and the failed battery startup Britishvolt. An effort to attract a battery company to Coventry airport has so far failed. Imran Khatri, the co-owner of Volklec along with his brother, Sameer, was previously an investor in Britishvolt. Popham said Volklec would learn from other companies' mistakes, taking a 'phased' approach that 'takes out as much of the risk as possible'. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion 'Those companies that haven't been successful, it's because they tried to get to our stage three, rather than our stage one,' Popham said. It will use FEB's technology, will bring in its technicians to mirror the manufacturing processes used in China, and will buy materials from its suppliers at the cost available to a larger company. 'The combination of the two [companies] gave us a fast route to market at low risk, at modest investment,' said Popham. 'Battery manufacturing is complex. The engineering is complex. It takes time, and it takes investment,' he added. The first phase will involve making 100 megawatt hours of batteries on UKBIC's existing lines, before using spare space to produce another 1GWh of batteries there by the end of 2026. That 'springboard into a gigafactory' will cost about £100m, with £20m committed from the Khatris, Popham said. The 10GWh phase would take about £1bn in investment, and at least five years.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Battery firm announces gigafactory plan
Talks have taken place with a battery firm about the possibility of building a gigafactory in Coventry. Manufacturing firm Volklec has announced it will begin producing batteries at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre and hopes to ultimately build a £1bn gigafactory in the next five years. Although no final decision has been made about the location talks have taken place with the city council about it being built at neighbouring Coventry Airport. Plans for a gigafactory (a large factory for electric vehicle batteries) at the airport site have been talked about for the best part of a decade. According to the latest figures obtained by the BBC, £25.25m of taxpayers money has been committed to plans to build an electric battery gigafactory at Coventry Airport project since 2021. Those funds have come via the West Midlands Combined Authority and Coventry City Council - with an additional £2m pledged by Coventry Airport Limited. Yet, to date, no firm has committed to the project and there have been no visible signs of progress. Councillor Jim O'Boyle, cabinet member for jobs at the city council, confirmed talks had been held with Volklec. He said a gigafactory at the airport "had to happen" and added "I think with the right will, and the right people, it won't be long before we can make a proper announcement." Asked about his hopes of securing investment from central government to kick start the project, he said: "I'm very confident that will happen. There hasn't been one single gigafactory anywhere in the world that hasn't benefitted from the relevant government providing grants to make that happen." Volklec's first batteries are expected to roll of the production line at the UKBIC before the end of the year. About 100 jobs will be created initially and there are hopes 1,000 jobs will be created if a new gigafactory is built. Phil Popham, executive director of Volklec, said millions of power cells would be built under an agreement with Chinese partner Far East Battery and would be used to power everything from road vehicles to marine technology. He said it was "too early to say" if Coventry would be the location. Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: Coventry gigafactory in limbo as plan faces expiry Budget concerns over city's planned gigafactory Investor not yet secured for planned gigafactory Volklec
