APC launches competition to support UK’s first battery manufacturing development facility; part of £246M Faraday Challenge
24 July 2017
The UK’s Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC), in conjunction with Innovate UK, has launched a competition to facilitate funding of the UK’s first automotive battery manufacturing development center. The new facility, which will be funded through the £246-million (US$321-million) Faraday Challenge, will allow pioneering battery technology to be scaled up suitable for high-volume production.
This is intended to enable the British EV battery supply chain to increase its capabilities, and attract global OEMs and suppliers to develop new technology in the UK. The project is expected to create a number of automotive supply chain jobs, in addition to the 19,000 already protected and created by APC projects since 2013.
The Faraday Challenge is a government-funded initiative to develop a number of capabilities in the UK EV battery supply chain. The Automotive Council has set several targets for the Faraday Challenge to meet by 2035, as follows:
Reduce battery cell cost from £100/kWh (US$130) to £38/kWh (US$50);
Double a battery cell’s energy density, from 250 Wh/kg to 500 Wh/kg;
Increase a battery cell’s coldest operating temperature from -20°C to -40°C, and hottest operating temperature from 60°C to 80°C; and
Improve a battery pack’s recyclability from 10-50% to 95%.
The new battery facility is one of three projects under the Faraday Challenge.
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