A trio of automotive firms have joined up to create “a new powerhouse” for the design, engineering and manufacture of low-volume electric vehicle technology – and it will be be headquartered in Cornwall and the West Midlands.
The new firm, Watt EV Holdings Ltd, has been formed by combining Cornwall’s Watt Electric Vehicle Company, Worcestershire vehicle architecture company Stalcom and JSC Automotive, a Germany-based research and development firm.
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Those three firms have pooled their resources to create a single entity that can design, engineer and sell small-volume electric vehicles, for both passenger and commercial use. The service will be aimed at companies looking to produce an EV in small volume, and means they won’t need to develop a bespoke platform or their own manufacturing facilities.
The vehicles will be based on the Passenger and Commercial EV Skateboard (PACES) developed by Watt, which features laser-cut aluminium elements that will be linked using Stalcom’s ‘FlexBond’ system. The platform is claimed to be scaleable to cope with everything from “sports cars to buses”, and can accommodate front-, rear- and twin-motor powertrains. Lithium-ion batteries will be supplied by an unnamed supplier.
Watt is already planning to build light commercial EVs at a new factory in the West Midlands, which should have an annual apacity of around 5000 units. The first vehicle is due to be revealed later this year, and is set to enter production in 2024.
Cornish firm Watt has already been working on an electric Porsche 356-inspired sportscar at its headquarters near Newquay, with first deliveries due to begin later this year. And yes, the world of electric vehicles really has gone stranger when there’s a Cornish-built EV inspired by a classic Porsche.
That two-door rear-drive model will use the PACES platform and weigh less than 1000kg. It has a 40kWh battery and a 120kW motor, with a claimed 0-62mph time of around 5.0secs. Watt is aiming to open a new factory in Cornwall next year, which will be able to produce 500 vehicles annually.
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