Britishvolt had two government meetings before collapse

Battery start up firm Britishvolt held two meetings with the government in the months before it went into administration, it has been revealed.

Talks with the business department were held last year as the firm sought funds for its gigafactory near Blyth.

The government had committed £100m in total to the project but refused to release a £30m advance.

Recharge Industries (RI) has bought out the firm and a deal on building the factory is nearing completion.

A BBC freedom of information request revealed the meetings were chaired by former business secretaries Jacob Rees-Mogg and Grant Shapps at the Department for Business and Trade, in October and November last year.

The government said it would not reveal details of the discussions because of "commercially sensitive information regarding Britishvolt".

Australian company RI, which is owned and run by a New York-based investment fund, has developed new plans for the Britishvolt brand name after buying it from administrators, EY.

It has said it would start producing batteries for energy storage by the end of 2025, before producing batteries for high-performance sports cars.

A spokesperson for Northumbria County Council said it was engaged in "ongoing discussions" with RI about the site at Cambois.

Last month, the authority extended a buy-back clause on the land at the former Blyth Power Station to allow the new owners to build the planned battery factory.

The authority, which has not commented on when work would start on the site, said it had "amended the conditions to the buyback option to reflect the revised approach of Recharge Industries to the progressive development of the site."

The BBC understands the company has completed power and energy deals for the site.

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