Eurocell, a British-Korean manufacturer of battery technology, has announced plans for its first Western European gigafactory, with the company eyeing up potential sites in the UK.
It seems not a week goes by without news relating to the development of a gigafactory in the UK, with both the West Midlands Gigafactory and the Britishvolt site leading the way. Now, Eurocell, which is based in South Korea, is considering the country as part of its plans to become a leading supplier of batteries in the European region.
Unlike other gigafactories, however, Eurocell hopes to be producing proven ‘production ready’ technologies in just 12 months, far faster than the other sites mentioned. The company says that this is possible as it already has a proven battery product which is ready for scaled-up manufacturing.
While the company is not yet settled on locating its factory in the UK, it has noted that it’s eyeing up three countries for the location of its facility. Those countries are the UK, the Netherlands and Spain, although the UK could be seen as the leading candidate considering the company’s ties to the country. Plus, the image that Eurocell sent out alongside its press release is captioned ‘Eurocell UK factory rendering’, so make of that what you will.
Recardo Bruins, CEO Eurocell EMEA, noted, “Eurocell in the UK is a new company, led by a highly experienced UK team and backed by our South Korean partner with decades of experience in electro-chemistry, making batteries at mass-scale and building the Gigafactories to produce them. Now we are planning to rapidly expand in Europe, supplying the energy storage and automotive industries with our market-leading technologies that last longer, perform better and are 100% safe. These products can be on the market in months, not years.
“To fulfil our mission, we are actively seeking a European manufacturing base and are in advanced discussions with sites in the UK, Netherlands and Spain. With the right level of central engagement and support we are keen to take advantage of the rapidly growing European market as quickly as possible.”
With an initial £600 million investment planned over two phases, Eurocell intends to supply European energy storage, automotive, and e-mobility applications.
Eurocell intends to construct its new Gigafactory in two phases. The first phase will begin producing advanced battery cells at scale by early 2023 for existing customers. In parallel a bespoke facility will be constructed on the same site, capable of producing in excess of 40 million cells per year by 2025.