London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 09, 2025

Britain's battery industry doomed by government, Britishvolt co-founder claims

Britain's battery industry doomed by government, Britishvolt co-founder claims

Britishvolt co-founder Orral Nadjari, speaking to Sky News in his first interview since the firm's collapse, claims government bureaucracy and delays were to blame for the company's failure.

Britain has now missed its window of opportunity to build a battery industry, and the government, including Rishi Sunak, is largely to blame, the head of collapsed cell manufacturer Britishvolt has told Sky News.

The company was feted as the jewel in Britain's manufacturing crown - the first home-grown gigafactory, co-financed by the government and turning out electric car batteries from its plant in the North East - but went into administration earlier this year.

Now, in his first interview since its implosion, co-founder Orral Nadjari blamed government bureaucracy for its failure.

"We lost that window of opportunity," said Mr Nadjari. "We already are behind East Asia. We're already behind continental Europe. The UK, unfortunately, has lost out or is losing out on the gigafactory economy, which is massive in terms of job creation.

"Unfortunately we didn't see that same support from the Conservative government in order to level up the North East. Because the North East wasn't as important for them as maybe other places in this country."

It comes as Vauxhall's parent company Stellantis called on the government to renegotiate its Brexit deal with the EU, telling a parliamentary committee's inquiry on electric vehicle production it was no longer able to meet trade rules on where parts are sourced.

Early investors 'to be hit hardest'

Stellantis' warning was echoed by Ford, who said in a statement tariffs will penalise companies that invested early in electric vehicles the hardest.

The industry, Ford said, "does not have sufficient supply of locally-sourced batteries and components to meet demand".

"Tightening the trade rules at this point risks undermining the switch to EVs with tariffs and adding pointless cost to customers wanting to go green.

"Manufacturers who have invested heavily early in the transition will be hardest hit by tariffs because combustion engine vehicles will continue to move tariff-free."

'Fatal delay'

Britishvolt had planned to build a large scale battery factory - a so-called gigafactory - at a site on the North East coast near Blyth.

The plans were hailed by the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson as "part of our Green Industrial Revolution" and the site was visited by then Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng.

But while the government agreed in principle to provide funds to help the company build the factory, Mr Nadari told Sky News the Treasury repeatedly dragged its heels.

He said even after all the necessary paperwork had been done, the relevant papers sat on the then Chancellor Rishi Sunak's desk for months before being formally approved.

That delay was fatal, Mr Nadjari alleged, because it meant that Britishvolt ended up trying to raise most of its money at a period of war and sky-high inflation, when global investment was cratering.

"Nobody could foresee a two digit inflation, that the country hasn't seen since 1955," he said, adding that Britishvolt was "caught between a rock and a hard place" as Mr Sunak and Boris Johnson battled during the former prime minister's last days in office.

"Nobody could foresee three different prime ministers, four different chancellors… The UK saw a very turbulent time… and for a startup, what is important is that continuous capital injection and that really halted off and unfortunately because of that rivalry, we were hit with a delay."
Orral Nadjari founded the company


Claims 'completely untrue'


The government disputes the timeline provided by Mr Nadjari, arguing that the final decision was awaiting approval for barely more than two months - as opposed to more than four - though it conceded it did insist on extensive due diligence before agreeing to provide public money.

A spokesperson said: "These claims are completely untrue. Taxpayer money must always be used responsibly which is why full due diligence was undertaken before a final grant offer was made.

"The grant offer, which was welcomed and accepted by the company, included an agreement that funds could only be drawn when agreed milestones are met, such as those on securing private investment. Unfortunately, these conditions were not met, and despite significant engagement from government, a solution was not found.

"The government remains committed to Levelling Up across the UK and is actively engaging with companies to secure investments that will ensure the UK remains a world leader in automotive manufacturing".

'No misappropriation of funds'


Following the collapse of Brtishvolt, allegations surfaced about whether its bosses, including Mr Nadjari, had been running the company responsibly.

In particular, there were stories about use of private jets, about a mansion near the company's Blyth site which it rented for the use of executives and about large sums spent on computers and yoga lessons.

Mr Nadjari said: "Having a wellness instructor as a preventative measure for people's health is economical. To be able to do that virtually for 300 people at a low cost of roughly £2,000 to £3,000 a month - that is very economical.

"There was no misappropriation of funds because not a single penny was spent on a private jet. £100,000 went to, as you say, a 'mansion'… but it was a large house. And if you look at the cost of renting a hotel room for that many people during that period of time, it was far more economical to rent a house.

"The fact that it happened to have a pool, that wasn't working for 18 months by the way, has nothing to do with it."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
A Dollar Coin Featuring Trump’s Portrait Expected to Be Issued Next Year
Australia Orders X to Block Murder Videos, Citing Online Safety and Public Exposure
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
×