Bright sparks: The case for UK battery production

InoBat’s chief commercial officer Iain Wight and senior commercial manager Kathryn Cranfield talk to The Engineer about the challenges and opportunities facing battery manufacturers in the UK. Chris Pickering reports.

InoBat's Volta 1 R&D facility near Bratislava, Slovakia

The government may have softened its stance on the proposed ban of new petrol and diesel passenger cars, but the global automotive industry is still heading rapidly towards electrification. It’s a trend that’s playing out across other industries too, from residential energy storage to aerospace. And it’s one that’s opening up major gaps in the supply chain – particularly in the UK.

The challenge with battery cells is that they’re very difficult to produce at a reasonable cost in anything other than huge volumes. Outsourcing is fraught with risk due to the finely controlled manufacturing processes, where the slightest change in temperature or humidity can result in a batch of bad cells. Meanwhile, setting up your own production line requires huge investment and guaranteed volumes.

We’ve seen three sites in the UK that we think would be suitable for a gigafactory, including one that had the advantage of being a free port. We think the way forward will be a smaller size of factory – perhaps in the region of 3 or 4 GWh – probably with a number of different lines, producing different formats but to a similar chemistry

Register now to continue reading

Thanks for visiting The Engineer. You’ve now reached your monthly limit of premium content. Register for free to unlock unlimited access to all of our premium content, as well as the latest technology news, industry opinion and special reports. 

Benefits of registering

  • In-depth insights and coverage of key emerging trends

  • Unrestricted access to special reports throughout the year

  • Daily technology news delivered straight to your inbox