Britain’s battery industry ‘doomed by government’, Britishvolt co-founder claims
Britain has now missed its window of opportunity to build a battery industry, and the government, including Rishi Sunak, is largely to blame, the head of collapsed cell manufacturer Britishvolt has told Sky News.
The company was feted as the jewel in Britain’s manufacturing crown – the first home-grown gigafactory, co-financed by the government and turning out electric car batteries from its plant in the North East – but went into administration earlier this year.
Now, in his first interview since its implosion, co-founder Orral Nadjari blamed government bureaucracy for its failure.
“We lost that window of opportunity,” said Mr Nadjari. “We already are behind East Asia. We’re already behind continental Europe. The UK, unfortunately, has lost out or is losing out on the gigafactory economy, which is massive in terms of job creation.
“Unfortunately we didn’t see that same support from the Conservative government in order to level up the North East. Because the North East wasn’t as important for them as maybe other places in this country.”
It comes as Vauxhall’s parent company Stellantis called on the government to renegotiate its Brexit deal with the EU, telling a parliamentary committee’s inquiry on electric vehicle production it was no longer able to meet trade rules on where parts are sourced.
‘Fatal delay’
Britishvolt had planned to build a large scale battery factory – a so-called gigafactory – at a site on the North East coast near Blyth.
The plans were hailed by the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson as “part of our Green Industrial Revolution” and the site was visited by then Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng.
But while the government agreed in principle to provide funds to help the company build the factory, Mr Nadari told Sky News the Treasury repeatedly dragged its heels.
Orral Nadjari
He said even after all the necessary paperwork had been done, the relevant papers sat on the then Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s desk for months before being formally approved.
That delay was fatal, Mr Nadjari alleged, because it meant that Britishvolt ended up trying to raise most of its money at a period of war and sky-high inflation, when global investment was cratering.
“Nobody could foresee a two digit inflation, that the country hasn’t seen since 1955,” he said, adding that Britishvolt was “caught between a rock and a hard place” as Mr Sunak and Boris Johnson battled during the former prime minister’s last days in office.
“Nobody could foresee three different prime ministers, four different chancellors… The UK saw a very turbulent time… and for a startup, what is important is that continuous capital injection and that really halted off and unfortunately because of that rivalry, we were hit with a delay.”
Orral Nadjari founded the company
Claims ‘completely untrue’
The government disputes the timeline provided by Mr Nadjari, arguing that the final decision was awaiting approval for barely more than two months – as opposed to more than four – though it conceded it did insist on extensive due diligence before agreeing to provide public money.
A spokesperson said: “These claims are completely untrue. Taxpayer money must always be used responsibly which is why full due diligence was undertaken before a final grant offer was made.
“The grant offer, which was welcomed and accepted by the company, included an agreement that funds could only be drawn when agreed milestones are met, such as those on securing private investment. Unfortunately, these conditions were not met, and despite significant engagement from government, a solution was not found.
“The government remains committed to Levelling Up across the UK and is actively engaging with companies to secure investments that will ensure the UK remains a world leader in automotive manufacturing”.
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UK ‘at risk of falling behind’
‘No misappropriation of funds’
Following the collapse of the company, allegations surfaced about whether its bosses, including Mr Nadjari, had been running the company responsibly.
In particular, there were stories about use of private jets, about a mansion near the company’s Blyth site which it rented for the use of executives and about large sums spent on computers and yoga lessons.
Mr Nadjari said: “Having a wellness instructor as a preventative measure for people’s health is economical. To be able to do that virtually for 300 people at a low cost of roughly £2,000 to £3,000 a month – that is very economical.
“There was no misappropriation of funds because not a single penny was spent on a private jet. £100,000 went to, as you say, a ‘mansion’… but it was a large house. And if you look at the cost of renting a hotel room for that many people during that period of time, it was far more economical to rent a house.
“The fact that it happened to have a pool, that wasn’t working for 18 months by the way, has nothing to do with it.”
Fears of a US-EU trade war have been reignited after Europe refused to back down in the face of fresh threats from Donald Trump.
The word tariff has dominated much of the US president’s second term, and he has repeatedly and freely threatened countries with them.
Money blog: Trump sends message to UK on energy bills
This included the so-called “liberation day” last month, where he unleashed tariffs on many of his trade partners.
On Friday, after a period of relative calm which has included striking a deal with the UK, he threatened to impose a 50% tariff on the EU after claiming trade talks with Brussels were “going nowhere”.
The US president has repeatedly taken issue with the EU, going as far as to claim it was created to rip the US off.
However, in the face of the latest hostile rhetoric from Mr Trump’s social media account, the European Commission – which oversees trade for the 27-country bloc – has refused to back down.
EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic said: “EU-US trade is unmatched and must be guided by mutual respect, not threats.
“We stand ready to defend our interests.”
Donald Trump speaks to reporters in the Oval Office on Friday
Fellow EU leaders and ministers have also held the line after Mr Trump’s comments.
Polish deputy economy minister Michal Baranowski said the tariffs appeared to be a negotiating ploy, with Dutch deputy prime minister Dick Schoof said tariffs “can go up and down”.
French trade minister Laurent Saint-Martin said the latest threats did nothing to help trade talks.
He stressed “de-escalation” was one of the EU’s main aims but warned: “We are ready to respond.”
Mr Sefcovic spoke with US trade representative Jamieson Greer and commerce secretary Howard Lutnick after Mr Trump’s comments.
Mr Trump has previously backed down on a tit-for-tat trade war with China, which saw tariffs soar above 100%.
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US and China end trade war
Sticking points
Talks between the US and EU have stumbled.
In the past week, Washington sent a list of demands to Brussels – including adopting US food safety standards and removing national digital services taxes, people familiar with the talks told Reuters news agency.
In response, the EU reportedly offered a mutually beneficial deal that could include the bloc potentially buying more liquefied natural gas and soybeans from the US, as well as cooperation on issues such as steel overcapacity, which both sides blame on China.
Stocks tumble as Trump grumbles
Major stock indices tumbled after Mr Trump’s comments, which came as he also threatened to slap US tech giant Apple with a 25% tariff.
The president is adamant that he wants the company’s iPhones to be built in America.
The vast majority of its phones are made in China, and the company has also shifted some production to India.
Shares of Apple ended 3% lower and the dollar sank 1% versus the Japanese yen and the euro rose 0.8% against the dollar.
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