Britishvolt faces administration after failed rescue talks

Troubled electric car battery maker Britishvolt is expected to fall into administration after failing to secure a buyer.

The company, which had plans to build a gigafactory to make the batteries in Northumberland, will file a notice for administration in the insolvency courts on Tuesday, it is understood.

A Britishvolt spokesman declined to comment.

The firm is expected to update workers about the proposed insolvency on Tuesday afternoon.

It comes a week after the group said it was in talks with investors over a possible sale to keep it afloat.

Last Monday, the company said it was seeking a deal with a consortium of investors to purchase a majority stake in Britishvolt and secure its future.

The group’s board held further talks but decided on Monday there were no current viable takeover offers.

The Government-backed start-up has been developing a £3.8 billion gigafactory in Blyth, Northumberland, and received tens of millions of pounds of financial backing from metals giant Glencore.

But it fell into emergency funding talks in November after revealing it was close to entering administration, and managed to secure funding to keep it afloat in the short term.

Britishvolt has around 300 existing employees who agreed to a voluntary salary cut for November to help reduce costs.