Plans for a new £200 million battery cell development facility in the West Midlands which would have created 150 jobs have collapsed following the administration of manufacturer Britishvolt.
It was announced last summer that the brand new unit on Prologis Park Hams Hall, east of Birmingham, would house a development plant for cells to be used in electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
The warehouse, which covers 260,000 sq ft and was completed last autumn, was already being constructed speculatively by Prologis UK ahead of the announcement about the tie up with Britishvolt but the hunt for tenants has now had to resume.
The new plant was tabled to be operational towards the end of 2023, bringing 150 skilled jobs to the West Midlands and also containing a visitor centre to showcase the site's activities.
It would have spearheaded the development of new cell formats which would have been used to create higher performance, production-ready batteries while at the same time lowering costs, making EVs more affordable for consumers.
The cells would have been assembled as part of EV batteries at a brand new, 2.7 million sq ft gigafactory which was set to be built in Northumberland - now another victim of the collapse of Britishvolt.
Logistics property specialist Prologis UK has confirmed it is now on the hunt for a new occupier for the warehouse at Hams Hall, known as DC2.
Paul Weston, regional head of Prologis UK which is headquartered in Solihull, said: "It was disappointing to hear that Britishvolt entered administration.
"Prologis UK has worked hard to support Britishvolt in its ambitions to develop and manufacture battery technology in this country, including during its widely reported financial challenges of the last few months. We wish the team well in its future endeavours.
"Our unit at Prologis Park Hams Hall, DC2, previously earmarked for Britishvolt's scale-up facility in the West Midlands, is unimpacted by the news and will now be marketed as available for immediate lease.
"We will look to secure another customer as soon as possible to bring valuable jobs and skills to the West Midlands."
Administrators from financial services group EY were appointed to Britishvolt yesterday following a failed eleventh-hour bid to rescue the company.
It had been embroiled in last-ditch meetings in the hope of finding a buyer to save it and keep alive the plans for the £3 billion electric battery gigafactory in Blyth, north of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
EY said the company had collapsed because of insufficient equity investment to fund both the ongoing research and the development of its sites in the West Midlands and the North East.
This was despite months of discussions to secure funding, culminating in three separate bids from groups which had expressed interest in taking a majority stake, with offers said to fall millions below the firm's value just a year ago.
Of the company's 232 employees, 206 were made redundant with the remaining 26 being kept on to assist with the sale of the Britishvolt's business and its assets and the orderly wind-down of the venture.
It had staff based at various office locations around the country, including in Leamington Spa and Mansfield, as well as working remotely from home.
Plans are still afoot to open a huge new gigafactory to make EV batteries at Coventry Airport which received planning consent 12 months ago.
Britishvolt was not connected with this project and bosses have stressed that it will continue unabated following the administration.
