Sunderland City Council has approved plans for the UK’s first at-scale battery manufacturing plant at the International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP)
The £450m battery manufacturing plant will form part of a £1bn partnership with Nissan UK to create an electric vehicle hub supporting next-generation EV production.
Envision AESC’s investment will create 750 green jobs and safeguard 300 jobs from its existing Sunderland plant.
Construction of the new building on IAMP is due to begin in 2022 to support battery production in 2024.
‘Laying the foundations for affordable EVs’
Chris Caygill, Envision AESC UK managing director, said: “We are extremely pleased with today’s decision, which means we can get on with the important job of building the plant and recruitment to fully resource the project team.
“We are immensely proud of the work we have done with our strategic partners Nissan UK and Sunderland City Council so far, which has laid the foundations for affordable EVs and sustainable growth in the region for the next generations.
“As a growing global business, we will continue to push the boundaries of battery technology, which has made us a world-leading battery supplier, with a safety record that boasts no critical incidents during the last 10 years.”
Nissan Sunderland plant vice president of manufacturing, Alan Johnson, commented: “We welcome the news that planning permission has been approved for Envision AESC’S new Gigafactory.
“This is a fundamental part of our EV36Zero project, bringing together electric vehicle production, battery manufacturing and renewables, and we’re all excited to see the progress being made.”
Councillor Tracey Dixon, leader at South Tyneside Council, added: “This is a huge boost for the local economy, and indeed for UK Plc, part of a wider £1bn investment that will secure and create hundreds – thousands – of jobs.
“This is what we hoped IAMP would deliver when we embarked on this partnership with Sunderland City Council, and so, seeing Envision AESC’s plans advance is vindication of our commitment to this important job-creating site.”
