Verkor has just unveiled its brand new battery pilot plant. This plant, in particular, will supply batteries for the future Alpine SUV. Built on the site of the former Siemens company, between the SNCF railway and the banks of the Yser, this plant required an investment of more than 250 million euros.

Production is fully automated, requiring only a hundred workers out of the 350 workers engaged in battery production. In the clean rooms of this factory, Verkor is ambitiously innovating. Eventually, “Verkor Innovation Center” (VIC) will be able to equip about 15,000 cars per year.

Factory for “preparation” of Dunkirk

The giant factory in Dunkirk, due to open its doors in 2025, aims to be “a copy 100 times larger” territory of Grenoble, which extends over 150 hectares of land. At least this is what Christophe Millet, technical director of Verkor, pointed out.

“VIC is where we develop, test and validate our innovative products. It is an ideal combination of a modern innovation center and a modern production enterprise.”, explained Christophe Millet with passion. The training center will be integrated into the VIC, enabling 1,600 people to be trained in battery trades, including future Dunkirk operators.

Verkor will diversify

As a shareholder, Renault, together with Schneider Electric and Arkema, undertook to buy three quarters of Verkor’s production. A great sign of confidence in this young dynamic company.

These batteries, made of lithium, nickel and cobalt, will provide “increased energy density and higher power” compared to conventional batteries used in electric vehicles, explained Philip Chain, a former Renault and Tesla employee.

Verkor does not intend to stop there. The company also plans to diversify its production by developing batteries suitable for other vehicles, such as construction equipment, as well as for stationary storage.

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