Charged up?
Huntingdonshire is attempting to position itself at the heart of battery development in the UK and the world.
The future of clean energy and battery technology development in Huntingdonshire in Cambridgeshire were the focus of an event hosted by Huntingdonshire District Council last month.
With proposals around a new UK Battery and Future Fuels Research and Development Centre (UKBRDC), which could be located in the region, there was much interest in the topic with more than 100 attendees from industry, policymakers and innovators in the field.
The UKBRDC could drive advances in mobility, defence and aerospace, creating new skills development pathways and boosting local economic growth in Huntingdonshire.
Huntingdon’s current offering in the sector includes the Bathtub, a modular battery testing development facility with access to universities and production sites, and Brampton Cross, an employment park supporting advanced physics and engineering companies in the area.
Tale of two halves
Speakers outlined multiple challenges the UK and Huntingdon area face in developing capabilities in battery technology, with others focusing on potential opportunities for Huntingdon to become an international hub.
One of the central capability needs identified by Jon Caine of AVL Battery Solutions is in fire safety and thermal-propagation testing.
Nick Birger, also of AVL Battery Solutions, outlined the need for modular battery-testing capability in the UK.
More big picture, he outlined concerns around Brexit and trade uncertainty; accessing European markets, infrastructure and the supply chain; government incentives; energy costs; competition from other markets; and economic and political stability. He felt the circumstances for growth in this sector were 'not ideal in the current state'.
He also suggested other regions in the world are better at taking ideas into production, with the need for small-business incubator services given that so many players on the market are working from a small scale. He believes it is 'not too late to act'.
Martin Dowson, who has worked at the High Value Manufacturing Catapult and Faraday Battery Challenge, noted everyone wants cheaper batteries, but cost and safety do not always go together.
John Halfpenny, of the Cambridge-spin out Echion Technologies, echoed Birger, with the view that the UK 'never have enough cell-testing capacity'. He also made the point that many battery developers are small-scale and need more support.
His ask from this perspective was for support to meet the needs of the diversity of players and materials in this market. Although, he believed the UK had 'missed the boat on passenger electric vehicles'.
He pointed to the level of demand for Echion’s patented, mixed niobium oxide (XNO) batteries, which are manufactured offshore. They have a 2,000t p/a XNO plant opening in Brazil.
He insisted we 'need to work across the world'. He feels it necessary to have an international production and customer base, noting the small market in the UK from his perspective. Around 90% of Echion’s customer base are overseas, he shared.
While Halfpenny says the UK is quite well served to prove a product, he also noted a lack of safety-testing capability and bemoaned the domestic skills gaps in the sector.
Ripe for development?
Offering a perspective from the aerospace sector, Shane Mason, Founder and Director of consultancy Strategical, discussed the potential of developing battery technology within the defence sector, providing what he called a 'sovereign solution'.
'The demand for military batteries is set to surge as the nature of warfare evolves, driving a growing need for endurance in battlefield electrical equipment and systems. Simultaneously, advances in powertrain solutions for larger assets, such as uncrewed underwater vehicles, are further accelerating this trend. This demand is global, encompassing all NATO member states and beyond.'
He mentioned Australia as another country where there is interest in defence-led battery development.
Stuart Brown, Head of Rolling Stock, East West Rail Co., meanwhile looked at the demand stemming from decarbonising the Oxford to Cambridge rail link. The options currently are full electrification, partial electrification with batteries, or hydrogen.
He anticipated 1,500 vehicles needing replacement, meaning around 60 vehicles per annum and then battery replacement every 15 years. But there are challenges in charging batteries while in motion at this scale.
Holistic vision
The panel discussion, entitled ‘Clean energy innovators and researchers in mobility, energy storage and aerospace’, was chaired by Charlotte Horobin of the Cambridgeshire Chamber of Commerce and embodied a more optimistic view on the situation in the UK and Huntingdon.
Amanda Lyne, Managing Director of hydrogen solutions for transport firm ULEMCo, revealed her part in campaigning with national government to see the energy system holistically. She spoke about the need for energy storage in the long-term, noting Denmark and Holland were currently leading in thermal-energy-storage technology.
She also stressed the important role of carbon capture and noted a huge research need in hydrogen.
Professor Andy Woods of the University of Cambridge picked up on the skills gap highlighted by Birger, saying the education sector is developing quickly in Cambridge across the spectrum, with new training courses and investment.
Woods concluded that the UK was 'ideally placed to build and trial all of these technologies'.
Lyne also wished to accentuate the positive saying, 'We’re all here because developers have seen the potential'. Adding it is 'hugely exciting' and 'we need to do this quickly'. Asserting, 'I think we’d attract the best skills to do it'.
Fiona McGonigle of Anglia Ruskin University went on to chair a talk on green skills in the region. She drew attention to the data science and engineering skills already present and the degrees being created for the future and serving industry.
Talent and skills are a key focus of Brampton Cross, she said, and recognised a need to align skills plans with policy and strategy.
Dave Bendell, Founder of the Oxford Energy Academy, also highlighted a need to plug the gaps in skills through re-skilling. He noted their existing Whitney and St Ives academies are aiming to stem shortages in skills.
Steve Thompson from Form the Future aims to help younger people understand the opportunities open to them. He wants to encourage industry to engage with young people saying, 'If you want to inspire and reach the future workforce you’ve got to be talking to them now'. More than this, they need to offer meaningfully paid placements. 'Start working with that talent now.'
Erik Mackie, Head of Research Engagement at Cambridge Zero, also stressed the need to work with the curriculum and reach children at an early educational stage.
Dr Uday Phadke, Co-Founder & CEO of Triple Chasm, a company specialising in commercialisation services, asserted the Bathtub represents a 'powerful example of how to do this right'.
Local boost
Rob Bridge, Chief Executive of Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority, chaired the panel discussion on growth plans for Huntingdonshire, Brampton Cross and the emerging UK Industrial Strategy. He referred to UKPLC’s reliance on this area, bettering opportunities. He presented a different set of challenges, namely infrastructure, housing, connectivity and skills.
Mike Gildersleeves, Corporate Director of Place at Huntingdonshire District Council, enthused, 'This region is [already] punching above its weight.' He believed they needed to capitalise on this and attract more people to live and work in Huntingdon.
Bridge believed they should push for more devolution of skills, with advanced physics and engineering a prime sector for jobs in Huntingdon.
Naomi Green is Managing Director of England’s Economic Heartland, focused on science and technology innovation in the region stretching from Swindon and Oxfordshire in the west of England, across to Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire in the east.
She acknowledged a ‘brain drain’ with young people leaving the region. She felt there needed to be more integration in the wider community, with 15,000 jobs outlined in the local plan.
Bridge says they are working closely with Homes England to 'unlock housing' and building a Manchester-Cambridge link.
Michelle Sacks, Chief Executive of Huntingdonshire District Council, closed saying of Huntingdonshire, 'We need a [battery] testing facility and we need it now, so why not here?'
