Following news in May of this year that the UK was set to beat out Spain as the site of the new Jaguar Land Rover owner, Tata's, gigafactory, motoring industry groups have now welcomed the announcement that the deal has been confirmed.
Tata will be building a multi-billion pound car battery plant, investing over £4 billion and creating thousands of jobs in a huge boost to UK electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing.
“The UK offers an extremely competitive landscape for investment in the full research, development, and manufacturing ecosystem for electric vehicle technologies and this has been recognised by Tata,” said Ian Constance, CEO of the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC).
“Their commitment to this gigafactory development has already had a transformative impact in awakening the battery supply chain sector to opportunities in the UK.
“Our insight, based on our unique relationships with vehicle manufacturers, shows that by 2030 the UK will need over 89GWh per annum of batteries for cars and light commercials alone and represents over 11% of the total demand across Europe.
“We have a vibrant and diverse industry, and Tata’s significant investment through JLR in R&D and manufacturing will help establish competitive supply chains and satisfy this burgeoning demand – and in doing so will create thousands of highly-skilled, green jobs.
“Today marks a significant milestone for the UK, as the batteries produced by Tata will not only work towards fulfilling the UK demand for electric vehicle production but will also boost businesses involved in the UK EV supply chain, meaning the impacts will be far reaching.”
The proposed site for the gigafactory is Gravity Business Park, close to the M5 in Somerset.
“We are delighted that Jaguar Land Rover-owner Tata are building this much needed facility here in the UK,” said Tim Alcock from LeaseElectricCar.co.uk.
“The EU has 35 electric car battery plants open, in construction or in planning stages, and currently the UK is significantly behind in these industrial strategies.
“The UK government acknowledges the urgent need for electric vehicle battery manufacturing in the UK to support the rapid uptake of EVs.
“The building of this facility will help bolster the infrastructure required to allow the industry to grow.”
