#britishvolt — Public Fediverse posts

Lol, nobody falls for a hustle like the Brits.

Data centres for shitty AI now is it? And how many people do those employ? And would they be local?
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/apr/15/britishvolt-gigafactory-site-sold-110m-us-private-equity-firm-blackstone-data-centre-northumberland
#UKPOL #UKpolitics #LLM #BritishVolt #Northumberland

You may recall a previous post about the problems at #battery start-up #BritishVolt (backer not completely paid bid price; unpaid wages etc.). Now a former employee has lodged a statutory demand for back pay, which if not paid in the next 21 days will likely trigger bankruptcy proceedings.

Its not a good look for the UK's attempt to be serious about investment in the #greentransition - it needs to me more than a seeming project to merely farm state-support (as many suspected it was!)

Q. what *is* going on at #Britishvolt?

Having been bought out of administration by an Australian entrepreneur, now it seems bills are unpaid & staff have not received wages for months.

Now staff suspect that owner David Collard is knowingly trading while insolvent (which can lead to fines & being banned from being a UK director).

Moreover, Collard has yet to completely pay the administrators for the firm...

If this is the future of a UK #batteries manufacturing sector then obscurity beckons

#Auspol #BritishVolt #ScaleFacilitation #RechargeIndustries #TaxFraud #WageTheft #DavidCollard #PwC

Businesses can always afford to spend big on acquisitions and pay their consultants to evade taxes but workers are always the first to be swindled.

“According to itvNews, “The Australian-American company that rode to the rescue of the failed Northumberland car battery business Britishvolt has failed to pay the final instalment in its purchase of the company”.

“Defiant, Scale Facilitation responded “we dispute we are in default”.

“The excuses from Scale are running thick. We can now reveal that the company raided in June by the ATO’s Serious Financial Crime Taskforce over an alleged $150 million tax fraud, has reportedly paid millions to PwC to provide tax advice on its Australian and UK businesses.”

50 New York employees haven’t been paid on time since Feb. CEO, ex-PwC partner David Collard first blamed ‘technical” issues with payroll’ then ‘a lack of cashflow’.
 

#MichaelWestMedia #MWM

#Auspol #BritishVolt #ScaleFacilitation #RechargeIndustries #TaxFraud #WageTheft #DavidCollard #PwC

Businesses can always afford to spend big on acquisitions and pay their consultants to evade taxes but workers are always the first to be swindled.

“According to itvNews, “The Australian-American company that rode to the rescue of the failed Northumberland car battery business Britishvolt has failed to pay the final instalment in its purchase of the company”.

“Defiant, Scale Facilitation responded “we dispute we are in default”.

“The excuses from Scale are running thick. We can now reveal that the company raided in June by the ATO’s Serious Financial Crime Taskforce over an alleged $150 million tax fraud, has reportedly paid millions to PwC to provide tax advice on its Australian and UK businesses.”

50 New York employees haven’t been paid on time since Feb. CEO, ex-PwC partner David Collard first blamed ‘technical” issues with payroll’ then ‘a lack of cashflow’.
 

#MichaelWestMedia #MWM

Another month, another announcement of an #automotive #battery plant, this time in #Bridgewater, Somerset, to be built by #Tata for Jaguar Land Rover #electriccars.

There's the promise of a big chunk of #taxpayers support, and these is also a by-election there tomorrow (which is why the news has surfaced today, no doubt).

The Q. is will Tata make a better of job of getting this off the blocks than #Britishvolt did?

(Meanwhile the #Tories are also offering Tata Steel cash elsewhere....)

#Auspol #Batteries #BritishVolt
#DavidACollard’s Geelong company, Scale Facilitation, raided by the AFP, the ATO, and officers from the Serious Financial Crime Taskforce, over an “alleged taxation fraud” at [subsidiary] SaniteX.

“Marles’ electorate covers Avalon where Recharge Industries, a Scale subsidiary, is promising to build a battery ‘gigafactory’. So, why wouldn’t he and the Opposition leader give the Geelong-educated Collard, once the youngest partner at PwC partner, a morale boost, especially one with green-tinged ambitions across Australia, the UK and the US?

“But how could a small company established in 2019 with little track record, apart from flogging facemasks during the pandemic (how hard would that be?), afford to lease the entire floor of One World Trade Center, built on the site of the Twin Towers, and pay for Dutton to visit its glitzy Big Apple HQ?”

Also, he expects the Australian government will repay him for his investments. #Dodgy

From: @MichaelWestMedia
https://fairdinkum.one/@MichaelWestMedia/110692212246307392

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jul/01/wheres-the-money-questions-over-australian-company-scale-facilitation-britishvolt

If you're waiting for the #BritishVolt factory to be built in Northumberland, backed by £100m of #UKTaxpayers' money....I wouldn't hold your breath.
Did UK government do the full #DueDiligence dance before agreeing to that subsidy, I wonder?

‘800,000 car industry jobs at risk’ unless UK renegotiates #Brexit deal

All down to the #Conservative government. First for Johnson’s reckless #ToryBrexit and second because a personal feud between Johnson and Sunsk is what sunk #BritishVolt

https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/business-economics/800000-car-industry-jobs-at-risk-unless-uk-renegotiates-brexit-deal-348757/

#BritishVolt collapsed due to Sunak/ Johnson rivalry https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/business-economics/britishvolt-collapsed-due-to-sunak-johnson-rivalry-348711/

Fiffelbolaget Britishvolt
Britishvolt eller som det formellt hette Power by Britishvolt Limited startades 2019 av Lars Carlström. Det uttalade syftet var att bygga en batterifabrik i Blyth, Northumberland i England. Fabriken skulle kosta motsvarande 49 miljarder svenska kronor.
https://blog.zaramis.se/2023/05/04/fiffelbolaget-britishvolt/
#Brott #Ekonomi #Energi #Bedrägeri #Britishvolt #Investeringsbedrägeri #Jool #Konkurs #Penningtvätt #PowerbyBritishvoltLimited #Saab

Fiffelbolaget Britishvolt
Britishvolt eller som det formellt hette Power by Britishvolt Limited startades 2019 av Lars Carlström. Det uttalade syftet var att bygga en batterifabrik i Blyth, Northumberland i England. Fabriken skulle kosta motsvarande 49 miljarder svenska kronor.
https://blog.zaramis.se/2023/05/04/fiffelbolaget-britishvolt/
#Brott #Ekonomi #Energi #Bedrägeri #Britishvolt #Investeringsbedrägeri #Jool #Konkurs #Penningtvätt #PowerbyBritishvoltLimited #Saab

Fiffelbolaget Britishvolt
Britishvolt eller som det formellt hette Power by Britishvolt Limited startades 2019 av Lars Carlström. Det uttalade syftet var att bygga en batterifabrik i Blyth, Northumberland i England. Fabriken skulle kosta motsvarande 49 miljarder svenska kronor.
https://blog.zaramis.se/2023/05/04/fiffelbolaget-britishvolt/
#Brott #Ekonomi #Energi #Bedrägeri #Britishvolt #Investeringsbedrägeri #Jool #Konkurs #Penningtvätt #PowerbyBritishvoltLimited #Saab

The strategic positioning of countries with an eye on the future expansion of #electricvehicles continues:

#Indonesia (with the largest #Nickel reserves in the world) has banned export of raw nickel with the intent of 'encouraging' the setting up of #battery plants in the country.

Following on from the competition over the supply of #lithium we can see the shape of the global #supplychain for electric vehicles is going to be of some interest to Govt.s;

so perhaps another go for #BritishVolt?

How much is a #battery manufacturing plant worth to the UK?

Well, the (new) owners of #BritishVolt are likely to be surprised to find they've undervalued themselves....

Or at least in #Tata's eyes they have: Tata (owner of Jaguar Land Rover) is, according to the FT 'demanding' £500mn (!!) of state aid in various forms, not to locate its new battery plant in Spain....

its almost like Tata saw the £85mn the Govt. had put aside for battery support & thought we should leave a bit on the table!

Britishvolt receives last minute buyout, saving the sole U.K. battery maker

https://www.teslarati.com/britishvolt-buyout-recharge-industries-u-k-battery-manufacturing/

#BatteryProduction #Britishvolt #Featured #News

The shape of #electricvehicles sales... and the (global) context for #BritishVolt's 'rescue';

Sales (globally) are certainly going up but how long before this rise hit the problems of a lagging #infrastructure for #charging?

Certainly in the UK e-car owners are already have #rangeanxiety & unreliable provision of (fast) chargers.

At present, over half of all pubic charging points are in China (which maps onto sales), but Europe lags.... and the Uk, well of course, our provision is 'uneven'!

#BritishVolt redux?

An Australian firm (with, one might presume, good access to Australian #lithium) has bought British Volt out of administration - that's the good news...

The bad news is that the buyer is essentially a start-up (a special purpose firm) yet to have constructed a plant or brought a major project to fruition... so lots of big promises, but looks like we may just be in for more farming of Govt. support?

British Volt cynics will definitely think the latter!

Australian startup Recharge wins bid for collapsed UK battery company #Britishvolt

#takingbackcontrol

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/feb/06/australian-startup-recharge-wins-bid-for-collapsed-uk-battery-company-britishvolt

How do the parasites from #financialservices profit from others' work?

You will be aware that #BritishVolt has gone into administration (as a buyer is sought).

So, after two years of taking £500k per month for putting in place a #business advice team, #Ernst&Young have now had themselves appointed as administrators (earning themselves further fees)

This also ensures that for any outstanding fees they are a priority creditor (as administrator).

a clear conflict of interest!

h/t FT

Why does there seem to be some difficulty in the development of a 'mature' #battery sector?... there may be particular reasons for the difficulties faced by #BritishVolt & others but Robin Harding (FT) suggests some structural economic issues under recognised by #investors & #entrepreneurs:

scarce inputs
large scale capital requirement
It business-to-business with no real brand element

the analogue is the #chemestry sector not #manufacturing, hence the miss-steps if this isn't appreciated!

#Britishvolt ‘collapsed owing £120m’ as UK car industry reports dismal year https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/jan/26/britishvolt-collapsed-owing-120m-as-uk-car-industry-reports-dismal-year

"#BritishVolt is a monument to global Britain's empty hype"

#BrexitReality

#r4today
https://twitter.com/BloombergUK/status/1617405285852762112?t=-48UsjCXQLOwSUr8ED_4lw&s=19

#Britishvolt closure a ‘monument to global Britain’s empty hype’ https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/business-economics/britishvolt-closure-a-monument-to-global-britains-empty-hype-342330/

"Auto manufacturing shows more than most industries how #Brexit is a fantasy of independence in an interdependent world. Hype can only carry you so far. Sooner or later, reality hits." #BritishVolt

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2023-01-23/britishvolt-is-a-monument-to-global-britain-s-empty-brexit-hype

#Brexit is an anti-Midas - everything it touches turns to shit.

#BritishVolt

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/22/business-minister-boasted-britishvolt-brexit-success-months-before-collapse?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

Whatever went on at #BritishVolt, the UK's lack of projected #battery capacity says something about our continuing failure to organise in sectors that involve anything other than opportunities for #rentiers (some would argue BritishVolt's problems stem from its existence as a farm for taxpayer support)... we need to invest in the future not in our elites' pleasures & profits

#electriccar
#greentransport
#greenenergy

Collapse of #Britishvolt a “sad reflection” on #Brexit, says William Hague. #BrexitReality #ToryIncompetence #BrexitBrokeBritain https://apple.news/A39QRjOJGS2-KwLPU_evX_A

@TheEuropeanNetwork An interesting piece about on the collapse of Britishvolt.

What it doesn’t mention, however, is that due to the outsized value of batteries in electric vehicles combined with Rules of Origin for recognising a car as UK or EU product (needed to export UK built cars to the EU), the lack of domestic battery production will greatly harm EV production in the UK.

A car manufacturer targeting all of Europe might as well build in Slovakia then.

#UK #Britishvolt #EV

Britishvolt was meant to be the UK’s answer to Tesla. By 2024, it was supposed to be producing hundreds of thousands of lithium-ion batteries a year for the automotive sector.

It amassed nearly $2.5 billion in funding promises, including £100 million from UK government, and preliminary deals to supply batteries to Aston Martin and Lotus.

But nine months after it broke ground on its “gigafactory”, Britishvolt entered administration.

https://www.wired.co.uk/article/the-collapse-of-britishvolt

#UK #Britishvolt #EV #Gigafactory

#britishvolt farce.

Why would anybody in their right mind think that a battery maker, without the backing of a major car manufacturer, would survive?

Oh hang on - is was a Tory Right levelling up plan!

U.K. based battery producer Britishvolt collapses ahead of production

https://www.teslarati.com/britishvolt-bankrupcy-before-production/

#BatteryProduction #Britishvolt #Featured #News

The utter disaster of #Brexit well illustrated by the #Britishvolt administration situation. There are 35 car #battery factories under development or in production in the #EU. The UK has one Chinese plant!! http://bit.ly/3IYYhbk #BrexitRecession #rejoinEU #ToryCostOfGreedCrisis