Question marks have been raised over the funding of Britishvolt’s £3.8bn 'gigafactory' in the north-east of England after the exit of its chief executive and co-founder.
The company confirmed over the weekend Orral Nadjari stepped down to be replaced by his deputy, Graham Hoare, who will be acting CEO.
His departure comes at a difficult juncture for the company, which is planning to create a giant car battery factory in the tiny coastal hamlet of Cambois, near Blyth, in Northumberland.
Citing leaked internal memos, the Times said Britishvolt had been forced to slash its valuation to attract additional cash to fund the project.
The report also suggested construction of the plant, which was to have directly employed 3,000, was stalling and the business’ finances had been put on “life support”.
Production from what was slated to be the UK’s first electric vehicle battery factory has been delayed by at least a year to 2024, the newspaper added.
The Times said the group has been struggling to land a further £200mln of investment ahead of the planned stock market flotation, the valuation of which has reportedly been reduced to £1.5bn from £2bn.
The Wall Street Journal, a sister publication of the Times, suggested funding could come from Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, a renewable energy fund that has backed five biomass or waste incinerator plants in the UK.
Former CEO Nadjari holds a 25% stake in the business, while its main financial backers are miner and commodity trader Glencore and the investment group abrdn. The project has also been the recipient of £100mln of taxpayer support.