Pioneering electric truck company Volta Trucks has filed for bankruptcy in another blow to the UK’s fledgling EV sector.
Volta was based in Sweden but employed around 600 staff in the UK mostly in the Midlands.
In a statement, Volta said it had accomplished a great deal from a standing start in 2019 but like all scale-ups in the EV manufacturing sector has faced challenges along the way.
The collapse of its battery supplier Proterra was the final mail, the company that earlier in the year in June had its first service hub opened in Tottenham by London mayor Sadiq Khan.
Proterra’s failure had meant has a ‘significant impact on our manufacturing plans, reducing the volume of vehicles that we had forecast to produce’, it added.
“The uncertainty with our battery supplier also negatively affected our ability to raise sufficient capital in an already challenging capital-raising environment for electric vehicle players.”
Prior to its collapse Volta had raised more than €360m (£312m) with its Zero truck designed for inner city deliveries.
M&S had tested its trucks in road trials in the UK last November.
Like Volta, other EV start-ups have struggled to find more funding recently.
Lordstown Motors, a US electric trucking company filed for bankruptcy protection in June while Chinese electric car maker WM Motor collapsed last week.
At one point both companies had been valued at well north of US$1 billion.
Arrival, a US-listed but UK-based EV maker cut a quarter of its staff earlier this month and is looking for new funding.