Credit: Agratas
Agratas reveals location for Tata Motors and Jaguar Land Rover battery gigafactory at the Gravity Smart Campus near Bridgwater in Somerset
Tata Group's global battery business has confirmed it will build a multi-billion-pound electric vehicle (EV) battery gigafactory at the Gravity Smart Campus near Bridgwater in Somerset, with Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Motors lined up as its first customers.
Agratas today announced it has acquired a significant land holding at the campus, making it the first and primary occupier on the 616-acre site which has been designated Enterprise Zone status until 2042.
The move confirms the location for the high profile project, after the government last summer agreed a support package reportedly worth hundreds of millions of pounds with the India-based conglomerate.
Agratas said the planned facility was set to become the biggest battery factory in the country when production begins in 2026, boasting sufficient capacity to produce 40GWh of batteries a year.
It is estimated the site will contribute almost half the projected battery manufacturing capacity required by the UK automotive sector by the early 2030s, with plans also afoot to create batteries for two-wheel and commercial vehicles as well as energy storage projects.
Confirmation of the site's location comes after MPs warned the UK faces a looming battery 'gigafactory gap' that threatens to hamper the growth of the domestic EV industry unless the government ramps up efforts to secure investment in more factories.
According to today's announcement, the new factory is set to create up to 4,000 new high-skilled green tech jobs, with many thousands more expected to be created in the UK supply chain.
Agratas added that it planned to work closely with local and regional partners, including Somerset Council, Bridgwater and Taunton College, and the wider Gravity Smart Campus, to deliver bespoke education and training programmes in the region.
Tom Flack, CEO at Agratas, said the multi-billion-pound investment will bring state-of-the-art technology to Somerset, helping to "supercharge" Britain's transition to electric mobility and creating thousands of jobs in the process.
"We care deeply about the communities we operate in, so it's imperative to us that we work with, and listen to, our new neighbours as we build our factory in Somerset," he said. "That's why we'll be holding an event for local residents very soon, so we can share more about our plans and introduce our team to the community."
According to its website, construction of the Gravity Smart Campus will also feature recycled concrete and recycled aggregate imported from the Hinkley C connection project.
The announcement comes after the owner of Tata outlined its intention to build a flagship £4bn European electric car battery factory - its first gigafactory outside of India - in the UK last July, after months of negotiation with government to secure a major state aid package.
The UK was selected over an alternative site in Spain, with the government set to provide hundreds of millions of pounds in subsidies and tax breaks to support the development of the plant.
The news also follows the award of a £200m bridging loan to China-owned firm AESC from the UK Infrastructure Bank to support the development of its 15.8GWh gigafactory in Sunderland.
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