Britishvolt, which is developing an electric vehicle battery 'gigafactory' in the north-east of England, has been forced to halt some work and slash costs as it awaits its next injection of funding.
A leaked presentation by the company to investors said the company has put some projects on “life support” as it cuts spending on the £3.8bn project.
The company and its lead construction contractor, ISG, told the Guardian, which received the leaked presentation, that pauses would be in place until designs are completed in October.
Since it was founded in 2019, Britishvolt has received promises of investment from the British government and private partners, including Glencore PLC (LSE:GLEN), Ashtead Group PLC (LSE:AHT) and Abrdn PLC (LSE:ABDN) that it claims could add up to at least £1.7bn.
In February it launched a £200mln fundraising to develop its factory on the site of the former Blythe power station in Cambois, Northumberland, of which Glencore committed £40mln to build on its participation in previous fundraising series.
A promised £100mln of government funding has not yet been fully signed off, with Boris Johnson saying last month that an "in-principle offer of support" was sent to the company.
In May it received a strategic investment from shipping firm Scorpio to develop maritime battery power, adding to deals with Aston Martin and Lotus.
The presentation said the company had opted to put some work on “life support” in order to “minimise cash out”, the Guardian reported.
A Britishvolt executive told the paper that the company was “ahead” with the building work, though it had prioritised some work over others, with potential delays only expected to have a “fairly small” financial impact.
“We have line of sight funding to continue with our current plans,” he said.