MADRID, Oct 19 (Reuters) – Slovakian battery maker InoBat said on Wednesday it had signed a declaration of intent with the Spanish government to set up an electric vehicle battery factory in the central Spanish city of Valladolid. .
The statement is not a finalized deal and other locations, including the UK, remain under consideration for its Western European gigafactory, the company added in a statement, explaining that it plans to make a decision on the location before the end of the year.
According to Spain’s Ministry of Industry, the plant is expected to cost 3 billion euros ($2.94 billion) and create more than 2,000 direct jobs.
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InoBat, which has a plant in Slovakia and has announced plans for another site in the US state of Indiana, sees Valladolid as an attractive location due to its wealth of talent, access to renewable energy, proximity with equipment manufacturers and its strong transport links.
It would be the fourth car battery project in Spain, although its viability depends on its eligibility for part of the European COVID-19 pandemic recovery funds that Spain has earmarked for the manufacture of electric cars and of batteries.
Spain has entered into a partnership agreement with Chinese green energy company Envision Group to build a battery factory for electric cars in Extremadura, jointly developed with Spanish renewable energy company Acciona Energia (ANE.MC).
German automaker Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) and its partners plan to invest 7 billion euros in a factory in Valencia.
A group known as BASQUEVOLT also plans to build a factory in the Basque Country, where the regional government, Iberdrola (IBE.MC), CIE Automotive (CIEA.MC) and Enagas (ENAG.MC), are among the shareholders.
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Reporting by Inti Landauro and Emma Pinedo; Editing by Andrei Khalip and Josie Kao
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