'Significant milestone' reached by Caithness battery manufacturer in its commercial operations
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A CAITHNESS battery manufacturer has reached "a significant milestone" as it plans the next phase of its commercial operations.
AMTE Power, which is based in Thurso, has signed a contract to manufacture its ultra high power cells at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC) in Coventry.
It means that UKBIC can be requested to manufacture up to 60,000 of the cells each year, over an initial term of two years.
AMTE develops and manufactures lithium-ion and sodium-ion battery cells for specialist markets, including electric vehicles.
The company, which has 35 staff at its Caithness site, has existing, non-binding memoranda of understanding with key automotive partners, Cosworth, Viritech and MAHLE Powertrain, in addition to development agreements with Sprint Power, Eltrium and BMW.
Production of the ultra high power cells is expected to be ramped up at UKBIC from January 2023. AMTE Power also has plans for its first megafactory in Dundee which is expected to create more than 200 highly-skilled jobs.
Kevin Brundish, chief executive of AMTE Power, said: "Having already secured significant early interest in our ultra high power cell from major automotive partners, this contract will enable us to bring our products to market sooner while we progress our own megafactory.
"This new phase in our journey builds on the partnership that we’ve established with UKBIC through cell development. It is testament to the investment that the UK Government has made in this market-leading battery manufacturing and scale-up facility that we are now able to put that development work into practice with the first production contract at UKBIC to get cells into customers’ hands as we power the energy transition.”
Managing director of the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre, Jeff Pratt, said:We’re delighted to be entering into this landmark agreement with AMTE Power to transfer their design into UKBIC and then manufacture their next generation ultra high power cells at volume, allowing us to further support the company’s significant commercialisation plans."
