Collapsed EV battery maker has been sold out of administration to Australian startup and rival Recharge.

Recharge has said it’s “confident of making the Cambois gigafactory a success and growing it into an advanced green energy project”

The deal was announced late Sunday and could put plans for a £3.8bn gigafactory at Cambois in the North East back on track after administrators were appointed in January.

The deal includes the majority of the business and assets, and the remaining employees have transferred to Recharge as part of the transaction. EY, which had already named Recharge as the preferred bidder, said the sale had seen “multiple approaches from interested parties and numerous offers received”.

The deal is regarded as fundamental to the development of technology and infrastructure needed for the UK’s energy transition, in particular the shift to electric vehicles.

Recharge said its plans will work to “make the UK’s first gigafactory a reality, creating a strategic economic and security asset which will play a critical role in the UK’s industrial and net zero strategies”.

David A. Collard, founder and CEO of Scale Facilitation, said: “We are thrilled to have been successful in our bid for ownership of Britishvolt; our plans are the right ones for the local community and the UK economy.

“Our proposal combined our financial, commercial, technology and manufacturing capabilities, with a highly credible plan to put boots and equipment on the ground quickly.”

Recharge is currently working to develop one of the world’s largest gigafactories, located in Victoria in Australia. Owned by New York fund Scale Facilitation Partners, the company is also investing in research and development of next-generation solutions to real-world and emerging energy storage solutions.

Collard added: “Our technology – including an exclusive license for the intellectual property and battery technology – has been developed and validated over the last decade through C4V in the US and will be the backbone of both gigafactories in Geelong and Cambois.

“Backed by our global supply chain, strategic delivery partners and a number of significant customer agreements in place, we’re confident of making the Cambois gigafactory a success and growing it into an advanced green energy project. We can’t wait to get started and want to start as soon as possible.”

Michael Cater, legal director and head of automotive IP at law firm Gowling WLG, commented, saying: “This is encouraging news for the UK automotive industry. The construction of UK gigafactories capable of providing a robust supply of battery technology is essential to the growth of EV development in this country, which presently relies heavily on technology developed in China, Korea and Japan. Although there are still significant hurdles that Recharge will need to overcome, the combination of Recharge and Britishvolt’s IP allied with a well-located site, knowledgeable workforce and potential customers on their doorstep in the form of UK luxury and performance car makers, provide a solid foundation for success. Given the need for the UK to build multiple gigafactories to meet industry demand by 2030, one hopes this will be the case and that it will encourage further investment into this key part of the future UK automotive supply chain.”

According to reports, work on the Britishvolt gigafactory will start in 6-12 months. Once up and running, the facility will initially focus on batteries for energy storage before turning to batteries for high-performance sports cars.