A major £2.5billion project will see a UK airport transform into a huge gigafactory as plans have been approved. Warwick District Council planning committee gave the all clear on applications to do with the early stages of what will become the UK's largest battery manufacturing facility.
Coventry Airport stopped functioning as a commercial airport in 2008 but continued to be used for cargo operations, as a base for executive jet services, general aviation and flight training, and the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance. Rigby Group acquired the airport in 2010, and the company has now confirmed that operations will cease on June 11, 2026, to accommodate the new project.
The West Midlands' Gigafactory project, also known as Greenpower Park, is set to be the nation's largest industrial facility by footprint, measuring the size of 74 football pitches. The tech hub will have an annual output capacity of 60 gigawatt-hours (GWh), which is sufficient to power approximately 600,000 electric vehicles.
According to New Civil Engineer, the project first received outline planning permission in March 2022. Meanwhile, two applications for reserved matters were presented to the Warwick District Council planning committee last week and have since been approved.
The first application related to the first phase of the gigafactory development, including essential earthworks, demolition of existing structures, formation of development plateaus, strategic drainage, landscaping and the creation of a spine road to serve the site.
The purpose of the other application was to obtain approval for reserved matters related to the establishment of a substation, which is essential infrastructure for powering the facility.
This is crucial as the development of the three transformers and related electrical infrastructure is essential for delivering the demands of the proposed battery production plant.
Project leaders have high hopes for the new development, revealing that the factory plans to use 100% renewable energy, generate huge investment, and create thousands of jobs.
The website reads: "The project has the potential to inject up to £2.5 billion of inward investment and £450m direct gross value added per year. It offers a benefit-cost ratio in excess of 10 over just over five years. It will create up to 6,000 new highly skilled jobs and thousands more in the supply chain."
