Following the news that Britishvolt has secured funding to build the UK’s first battery gigafactory in Northumberland in the north west of the United Kingdom;

Daniel Clarke, Analyst on the Thematic Research Team at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view:

“As an electrified world becomes more inevitable by the day, Western governments are working around the clock to fund and scale-up domestic battery supply chains.

“In 2020, the number of hybrid and electric cars on UK roads grew by 54.7%, reaching 327,833 —up from 211,915 in 2019. This new gigafactory has the capacity to produce 300,000 batteries per year. This is clearly a step in the right direction for the UK. But further work lies ahead.

“The number of EVs sold is expected to exponentially increase. In 2025, the United Kingdom hybrid & electric cars market is forecast to have a volume of 656,850 units, an increase of 100.4% since 2020. The UK government must further incentivize and fund several more of these gigafactories to meet demand—especially if it wants to avoid being reliant on battery makers in other countries such as China.”