Tata to build biggest UK battery plant

LONDON: A unit of Tata Sons Pvt. has signed a £750 million ($990.79 million) loan, to build what could be Britain's largest battery making facility, according to people familiar with the matter.

About 15 banks have signed the two-year bridge loan deal this month for Agratas Energy Storage Solutions Pvt., the people said, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private.

The deal is among the three largest foreign currency loans for an Indian company this year.

The two-year loan has been priced at a spread over the Sterling Overnight Index Average, or SONIA, and the deal has been signed but disbursement is ongoing, the people said.

The loan comes as global financial markets whipsaw amid tariff hikes.

Foreign-currency loans by Indian borrowers have risen 23% to $6.6 billion year to date compared to the same period last year, according to Bloomberg-compiled data.

An Agratas representative was not immediately available for comment.

Agratas, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons Pvt., develops battery cells with factories in India and the UK.

The factory will be the biggest in the UK and by the early 2030s will contribute almost half of the projected capacity required for the country's automotive sector, the company said in a release last year.