16 Mar 2021 | News
Call for a vision to translate UK battery research to industrial outcomes
Researchers point to higher funding for the sector in Germany, as key infrastructure to translate world class research is still missing in the UK
Research leaders have urged the government to put in place vital infrastructure to help drive a UK battery-powered sector and close an investment gap with the EU.
Scientists giving evidence to the House of Lords science and technology committee said the UK needed a battery-making industry to take advantage of world class fundamental battery science coming out of its university labs.
The UK’s existing battery research programme, the Faraday battery challenge, is a £318 million investment covering basic research, collaborative R&D and a new industrialisation centre, that “maps on nicely to the sector’s different technology readiness levels,” said Paul Shearing, professor in chemical engineering at University College London. Howev