Frustrated BBC caller questions value of electric cars

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Britishvolt – a major gigafactory in Northumberland – secured the cash injection despite not having made a single battery at the site. The FTSE 100 commodity trader contributed £40m to a funding round which values the company at almost £800m.

The company has said it aims to be up and running by the end of the year.

The latest deal comes after the Government contributed a £100m to underpin a £1,7bn sale and leaseback of the property near Blyth last month.

Investment by Glencore – which was already a shareholder – reflects the opportunity opened up for the commodities industry by the need for copper, cobalt and other metals.

Glencore is one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of thermal coal, used to generate electricity.

This comes after Glencore is facing pressure from its shareholders to exit traditional markets such as coal, the Telegraph reported.

Throughout 2021, Glencore set aside $1.5bn (£1.1bn) to resolve corruption investigations in the US, UK and Brazil.

Four years ago, it emerged the company was under investigation by the US Department of Justice over allegations of money laundering and bribery.

The company said it was expecting this investigation to be resolved later this year.

In 2019, the UK’s Serious Fraud Office launched its own investigation into the claims.

Chief executive Gary Nagle said: “We recognise that there has been misconduct in this company historically and there were flaws in our culture and we’ve worked very hard to correct that.

“We want to complete these investigations, put a line under that and move forward.”

In 2021, the company posted its highest-ever profit and Glencore said it had seen “multi-year on record-high prices for many of our commodities”.

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On Tuesday, it was reported that drivers may be able to benefit from savings of up to 60 percent on a vehicle thanks to a new Government-backed scheme.

The Electric Car Scheme is a high-demand new staff benefit which is a UK Government tax incentive and works via a salary sacrifice scheme.

The scheme helps save employees between 30 and 60 percent on an electric car of their choice.

Employees can make savings on the full range of electric cars available on the market across lease providers.

As part of the scheme, a Volkswagen Up! could cost as little as £150 per month, or a driver could choose a Tesla Model 3 from as little as £350 a month.

This scheme follows in the footsteps of the popular Cycle to Work scheme which sees employees save between 35 and 39 percent on a bike and accessories.

Thom Groot, Co-Founder and CEO of The Electric Car Scheme, said: “More than 80 percent of employees in the UK want their next car to be an electric car, and The Electric Car Scheme now makes this affordable through salary sacrifice.

“We’ve designed this with both the employer and employee in mind, so staff can drive new, electric cars at a 30 to 60 percent discount without creating a net cost or risk for their company.

“I encourage all UK employees that are looking to switch to driving electric to approach their company leadership team – whether it be via HR or finance – and request they look into this, as it really does benefit everyone.

“At The Electric Car Scheme, we are dedicated to making it a ‘no brainer’ decision for everyone to switch to driving electric, at an affordable cost.”

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