UK rejects AMTE Power’s urgent plea for funds as it works to avoid administration
AMTE Power faces an increasingly uncertain future after a report said urgent pleas for financial support from the government have fallen on deaf ears.
The UK’s only homegrown battery cell maker has been chasing talks with Whitehall about emergency funding, but chief executive Allan Hollis has been left frustrated by a lack of engagement from government officials, according to Sky News.
It reports that sources close to the company have contrasted the estimated £500m government support package being provided to Tata Motors’ Jaguar Land Rover unit with its “apparent indifference” to AMTE.
FRP Advisory is has been placed on standby to act as administrators, the news agency reveals.
Shares in the FTSE AIM All Share company have tanked from 51p per share to under four pence since the company first reported financial difficulties last month.
The company warned last Thursday it was on the brink of administration, warning that its financial situation was “becoming ever more critical” and that it now “needs to implement a solution within the next few business days.”
“Whilst active discussions continue with existing and potential investors, there can be no certainty of the outcome of these discussions, in which case putting the company into administration is ever more likely,” the firm said.
If the company is unable to secure additional funding, the prospect of shareholders clawing back their funds would be remote.
AMTE Power specialises in lithium-ion and sodium-ion cells used in high performance electric vehicle batteries and long-duration energy storage.
Prior to its fall from grace, the company had drawn up plans to build a gigafactory in Dundee, but has seen its valuation slump amid financing challenges.
The government and AMTE Power have both declined to comment.