Washington car battery factory creating 1,000 jobs would 'put region on world map'
A company is planning another huge gigafactory in the region - which could bring 1,000 jobs to the area and put the area on the world map for production of car batteries.
The plans for the electric vehicle battery gigafactory near Sunderland moved a step closer on Monday 9 September after city councillors voted to approve it.
If it went ahead, the facility at the International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP) in Washington would be used to manufacture the batteries crucial for electric vehicles, like those made at the nearby Nissan factory, which has said its vehicles will be fully electric by 2030.
The company already has one plant in the city and a second plant under construction, with new plans for ‘AESC Plant 3’ forming part of a feasibility study into whether it can expand its operations further.
It estimates the site would employ 1,000 people in Sunderland, taking AESC's workforce to over 2,500. It would support a further 800 indirect jobs, the company said.
Professor Colin Herron, a battery industry expert from Newcastle University, said: "This region is really establishing itself for electrification and the new technologies. Having the first gigaplant, which has been there 10 years, having a second gigaplant and a third one really puts us on the world map."
He added the development was "enormous" for the region. He said: "What we're having to do is bring more people to the industry, explain what's happening.
"So this is just one bit of a big picture of a lot of things happening in the region with skills, degrees and education.“
Due to the scale of the development and its location partially within the Green Belt, the application was referred to the Secretary of State, who will make a final decision in future.
The scheme was welcomed by Sunderland city councillors at a meeting this week.
Councillor Stephen Foster said the development was “much-needed in this area”, the Local Democracy Reporting Service reported.
Councillor Martin Haswell also credited the economic benefits of the scheme and the mitigation provided by the applicant around Green Belt impacts.
He added: “I enjoyed reading this report as there’s a lot of positives coming out of it in terms of job creation in the area and attracting more sustainable industry to this area as well.
“The development will give good higher-paying jobs which will be really useful to our community and our economy.
“I think the loss of the Green Belt space is really disappointing but unfortunately it has to happen.
“I would like to really credit the offsetting that has been done on this one.
“I haven’t necessarily seen this level of effort from an applicant in putting in that offsetting of the Green Belt space so that’s welcome as well, even though it is disappointing to lose it on the whole”.
AESC is Nissan’s battery partner and the car giant unveiled its EV36Zero initiative during a visit to the Sunderland factory by then Prime Minister Boris Johnson in July, 2021, aimed at making the Wearside plant a global centre of excellence in electric vehicle production.
Speaking at the time, Nissan’s then chief operating officer, Ashwani Gupta, said: “This is a landmark day for Nissan, our partners, the UK and the automotive industry as a whole. Nissan EV36Zero will transform the idea of what is possible for our industry and set a roadmap for the future for all.
“We reached a new frontier with the Nissan LEAF, the world’s first mass-market all-electric vehicle. Now, with our partners, Nissan will pioneer the next phase of the automotive industry as we accelerate towards full electrification and carbon neutrality.”
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