By Humber Refinery to become heartbeat of national electric vehicle production
Phillips 66 is eyeing the Humber Refinery as a hub to develop British EV battery production, after pushing more production of battery feedstocks.
Utilising the legacy from steelmaking, the refinery works in synthetic graphite production, which is helps develop EV batteries.
While battery manufacturing and car-building exists in the UK, the production of cells remains offshore – creating a domestic gap Phillips 66 wish to fill.
“We do see strong demand in EV, and we want to be part of that” said Mike Wailes, director of European strategy for Phillips 66.
The Humber Refinery is currently capable of helping over 1.3 million EV’s on the road, an increase of 160 per cent from just a few years ago.
Addressing the Waterline Summit, Mike Wailes said, “A real focus for the Humber Refinery is the EV battery coke that really stands us alone, not just in the UK but in Europe as the only producer of that.
“We are a world-scale producer, already making the equivalent of 1.3 million vehicles a year of EV battery coke, and unfortunately, there is not really the supply chain in the UK.
“We don’t want to be shipping our product out to China to be manufactured into cells then shipped back to someone who puts it into a vehicle battery (in the UK).”
This announcement follows commitments from major car manufacturers, like Jaguar Land Rover, to develop electric vehicles in the UK and push for net zero.
“We are speaking to the UK government on that opportunity, and we will see where that comes out.
“Unless you can do it in-house, we are going to be exporting to the Far East, and then re-importing.”
Should such expansion emerge, it could revitalise the local economy driving significant investment and further employment in the area.
