Battery developer Britishvolt has said it is in discussions with a consortium of investors over the potential sale of a majority stake in the company.
The company, which plans to build a £3.8 billion gigafactory in Northumberland, was close to appointing administrators last year before its current investors injected fresh funds. Following this Britishvolt agreed a “substantial” temporary pay cut among its 300-strong workforce while it sought new investment.
On Monday, the firm issued a statement saying it was currently in talks with a “consortium of investors”, although declined to identify them.
It said: “The discussions aim to secure legally-binding terms that would provide Britishvolt with long-term sustainability and funding necessary to enable it to pursue its current plans to build a strong and viable battery cell R&D and manufacturing business in the UK.”
The company’s financial troubles reportedly came to a head in November when the government refused to release funds from a promised grant early. It has said it expects this money to be released this year. Meanwhile, it is also hoping to receive the first orders for its electric vehicle batteries from carmakers.
Co-founder Orral Nadjari stepped down as chief executive in August and was replaced by former Ford chairman Graham Hoare.
The 30GWh gigaplant, earmarked for a 93 hectare site near Blyth is scheduled to start producing its first batteries in 2024 and be up to full capacity by 2028.