Nissan partner firm Envision AESC has attracted £1 billion of investment into a new EV battery factory in Sunderland, priming it to supply cells for the next-generation Nissan Leaf.
The deal comprises £680 million of funding from a group of banks (including BBVA, HSBC, the SMBC Group, Société Générale and Standard Chartered), guaranteed by two UK government bodies, the National Wealth Fund and UK Export Finance. The remaining £320m comes from private financiers and Envision itself.
This will allow Envision to begin tooling up a new factory across the road from its existing plant on the Nissan site on Wearside.
The government said this will yield a sixfold increase in its annual output of batteries, although it has yet to provide specific figures, and create some 1000 new jobs.
The existing factory currently produces 1.7GWh of batteries each year. The Guardian reported the new construction would boost output to around 15.8GWh.
Envision had previously announced plans to boost the plant's output to 38GWh, but it's unclear whether this remains the target.
CEO Shoichi Matsumoto said: "This investment marks a key milestone in AESC’s ongoing efforts to support the UK’s path toward decarbonization and the expansion of its EV market.
"Through close collaboration with strategic partners, we strive to accelerate this transition while creating high-quality local jobs and building a resilient, sustainable supply chain.
"We are honored to contribute to the development of a low-carbon economy with our advanced battery technologies."
Business and trade secretary Jonathan Reynolds added: "We’re backing our world-class car industry, and this investment is yet another vote of confidence in the north-east's thriving auto manufacturing hub which will secure a thousand well-paid jobs and boost prosperity across the region.
"Our modern industrial strategy will drive this growth even further, powering our high-potential sectors like advanced manufacturing so we can deliver jobs and investment in every corner of the UK and make our plan for change a reality."
The Mk3 Leaf will enter production later this year, aimed at a broader audience than the previous models, morphing from a traditional family hatchback into a high-riding crossover.
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