Britishvolt set to be bought by Australian firm Recharge

EY, auditors for Britishvolt, said that it had considered "multiple approaches", but had decided to choose Recharge. It did not provide any reason why.

The deal is expected to be finalised within a week.

In a short statement released today (Monday), EY said: "We are pleased to announce that the Joint Administrators have entered into an agreement with Scale Facilitation Partners LLC and its indirectly wholly owned subsidiary Recharge Industries Pty Ltd to be the preferred bidder in acquiring the majority of the business and assets of Power by Britishvolt Limited.

"This follows a process conducted by EY that involved the consideration of multiple approaches from interested parties and numerous offers received.

"Completion of the acquisition is expected to occur within the next seven days."

Britishvolt collapsed last month, laying off most of its 200 staff.

The business had planned to build a £3.8bn electric car battery plant in Cambois, a move which was expected to create thousands of new jobs.

Hopes had been high for the start-up, but it never managed to secure enough funding for the project.

However, experts say the site is a great location for a battery factory.

Recharge Industries founder David Collard said: "We're thrilled to be progressing with our proposed bid for Britishvolt and can't wait to get started making a reality of our plans to build the UK's first gigafactory.

"After a competitive and rigorous process, we're confident our proposal will deliver a strong outcome for all involved."

Recharge, which was founded in 2022, hopes to build a gigafactory of its own close to Melbourne in Australia, but the company is still in the early days of the project.

Local MP Ian Lavery met Mr Collard last month, and said he was encouraged by what the business founder had to say.

He added: “I was impressed by the commitment to their future workforce and the desire to get on and develop the site.

“I eagerly await the administrators’ decision and will do whatever I can to support whoever is successful in their bid to get a gigafactory built as quickly as possible. We simply cannot afford another false dawn for the people in this area.”