UK battery firm's funding lifeline to only last five weeks

UK battery firm Britishvolt has secured a deal that will provide the business enough funding to last until early December.

The future of the start-up was thrown into doubt over fears it could run out of cash after the government rejected a £30m advance in funding.

But the firm has raised money from an unnamed investor for five weeks.

The company's near 300 workforce has also agreed to take a temporary pay cut for the month of November.

Britishvolt, which has been championed by the government, wants to build a factory in Blyth in Northumberland, which would build batteries for electric vehicles but has struggled to find investors.

The £3.8bn plant had been expected to create 3,000 jobs but has already been delayed several times, which has led to doubts over whether it will become a reality.

It meant the company was on the brink of collapsing, but bosses managed to secure enough cash to stay afloat, with staff agreeing to take a "significant" pay cut during November in order to make the money last and executives working with no pay for the month.

Britishvolt chairman Peter Rolton told the Financial Times, which first reported that the funding would last for five weeks, that he was "confident" the company would be able to raise the additional funds it needs in time.

"We're nudging along, we are improving the position, but the interest is definitely there," he told the newspaper.

The FT said the sum raised on Tuesday was in the "single-digit" millions of pounds, according to sources, adding that Britishvolt previously said it needed to raise £200m to keep the business running until next summer.

In a statement, the company said it was exploring "both short and long-term funding streams" to build its so-called gigafactory, with several "international investors" making approaches in the past few days.

"While the weakening economic situation is negatively impacting much business investment at present, at Britishvolt we are continuing to pursue positive ongoing discussions with potential investors," the company added.

The project has been heralded by ministers as an example of "levelling up" - a Conservative aim of investing in communities to reduce economic imbalances in the country - with Blyth being one of Labour's seats to turn blue in the 2019 General Election.

At the time, then Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the investment as a "levelling up opportunity", while then Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said the factory and the jobs it was forecast to create was "exactly what levelling up looks like".

The £100m government pledge to Britishvolt is aimed at helping to build its battery plant, as well as attracting more private investment for the development.

However, Britishvolt has been forced to delay the start of production at the plant several times, with the latest company announcement stating it would be delayed again until the middle of 2025.