Australian startup Recharge finalises deal to take over UK battery maker Britishvolt

theguardian.com:

The Australia-based company Recharge Industries will take over collapsed battery maker Britishvolt after finalising a deal with administrators late on Sunday in the UK.

The agreement revives hopes for the construction of a £3.8bn (A$6.7bn) “gigafactory” in northern England, the backbone of a plan to modernise the British automotive industry and supply the next generation of UK-built electric vehicles.

The deal was finalised three weeks after Recharge, an Australian company that sits under New York-based investment firm Scale Facilitation, was nominated as preferred bidder, placing a huge opportunity, and burden, on a startup yet to construct a project.

Scale Facilitation’s Australian-born founder and chief executive, David Collard, told the Guardian the factory and an associated supplier park, where components are manufactured, were still a focus.

“We’re working closely with one of the leading UK fund managers looking to team [up] on the development,” Collard said.

Recharge also plans to build a battery factory in Geelong, a former car manufacturing hub in Australia, free from Chinese and Russian materials.

Britishvolt was planning to build its 30GWh factory in phases to take advantage of rising EV demand ahead of the UK’s 2030 ban of new petrol and diesel cars. The plant, located near Blyth in Northumberland, was expected to employ about 3,000 people when operating at full capacity.

It had £100m in conditional financing from the British government, but failed to meet various hurdles.

Britishvolt collapsed last month after running out of cash, with its demise partly blamed on the considerable sums it spent on battery technology and research. Part of Recharge’s pitch was focused on its existing relationship with American