Australia-based company Recharge Industries has sealed a deal to take over collapsed battery manufacturer Britishvolt.
The agreement with the administrators was finalised three weeks after Recharge, owned by New York-based investment firm Scale Facilitation, was nominated as the preferred bidder for the sale of Britishvolt.
The new deal means that the construction of the £3.8 billion gigafactory in Blyth, Northumberland will move forward.
David Collard, Scale Facilitation’s Founder and Chief Executive, said: “We are thrilled to have been successful in our bid for ownership of Britishvolt; our plans are the right ones for the local community and the UK economy.
“Our proposal combined our financial, commercial, technology and manufacturing capabilities, with a highly credible plan to put boots and equipment on the ground quickly.
“Our technology – including an exclusive license for the intellectual property and battery technology – has been developed and validated over the last decade through C4V in the US and will be the backbone of both gigafactories in Geelong and Cambois.
“Backed by our global supply chain, strategic delivery partners and a number of significant customer agreements in place, we’re confident of making the Cambois Gigafactory a success and growing it into an advanced green energy project. We can’t wait to get started and want to start as soon as possible.”
The news follows reports claiming that the deal has been delayed to give administrators more time to scrutinise Recharge’s plans.
At that point, ELN contacted administrators at EY and Recharge Industries – both declined to comment.
In a statement released earlier today, EY said: “The joint administrators of Power by Britishvolt Limited have completed the sale of the majority of the business and assets to Recharge Production UK Limited for an undisclosed sum.
“The remaining Britishvolt employees have transferred to Recharge as part of the transaction.
“The sale of the business will help to support the development of technology and infrastructure needed for the UK’s energy transition.”
