© Supplied by Agratas 
Tata Group’s new battery subsidiary Agratas has laid steel foundations for a gigafactory in Somerset that will have capacity to supply almost half of the UK’s demand for electric vehicle batteries.
Agratas said on Monday that the first steel frames have been installed at the site, on the Gravity Smart Campus near Bridgwater.
This marks the start of the next phase of construction of the 40 gigawatt-hour (GWh) gigafactory.
Agratas said that all the steel for the gigafactory will be supplied by British suppliers.
The pledge to use UK-produced steel comes after Tata Group closed the UK’s largest steelworks in Wales ahead of a £1.25 billion transition to greener steelmaking.
Tata Group said in February that its steelworks in Port Talbot will not reopen until 2027 following the installation of electric arc furnaces.
Rajesh Nair, Tata Steel UK’s chief executive, called the electrification of the steel plant a “significant” milestone in a “challenging global market”.
The steelworks, which shuttered last September with the loss of 2,800 jobs, will not be ready in time to supply the gigafactory, which is expected to start producing batteries in 2026.
Tata said that in December it signed a deal to supply “green steel” to construction equipment manufacturer JCB and appointed Robert McAlpine as a main contractor for the steelworks.
Agratas said that 17,000 steel piles have now been installed in the ground forming the foundations for the factory.
The first phase of the build was expected to be completed by the end of June, followed by the vertical build, it said.
The new Somerset facility is Tata Group’s first gigafactory outside India, and it is due to be the biggest in the UK, the company said in February.
It is expected to bring 4,000 new jobs to the region in the south-west of the UK.
Tata Motors, including Jaguar Land Rover, will be the factory’s first customers, Agratas said.
The facility will also create batteries for two-wheeled and commercial vehicles, as well as commercial energy storage solutions, it added.
Industry minister Sarah Jones described the new gigafactory as “vital for Somerset’s economy” and an illustration of the “huge growth potential” for battery manufacturing in the UK.
“That’s why our modern industrial strategy will turbocharge growth and investment in the industry for the long term, delivering on our plan for change,” she said.
“Agratas’ use of 100% UK-made steel for the construction is a welcome win for our steel industry in the run-up to the launch of our steel strategy, which will back the sector with up to £2.5 billion of investment.”
The company said that the Somerset facility will supply nearly half of the batteries for the UK’s automotive industry by the early 2030s.
Agratas CEO Tom Flack said: “Our multi-billion-pound investment will bring state-of-the-art technology to Somerset, helping to supercharge Britain’s transition to electric mobility whilst creating thousands of jobs in the process.”
Agratas did not respond to a request for comment.
