The British government will be providing financial guarantees to support the construction of a battery factory by Japanese company AESC in Sunderland. The project involves an investment of around 1.2 billion euros. According to AESC, the plantʼs intended annual capacity is twelve gigawatt-hours. The factory was first announced at the end of 2023.
807-million-euro bank financing
The project is supported through guarantees from the National Wealth Fund and UK Export Finance, among others. The guarantees have enabled bank financing amounting to the equivalent of more than 807 million euros. An additional 380 million euros will come from private financing and AESC equity. The production site is under construction near a Nissan plant which is transitioning to electric vehicle production. According to the UK government, the financial institutions involved include HSBC, Standard Chartered, and the SMBC Group. The funds will be used both for construction and operation of the plant.
