Tata Sons made the announcement today (Wednesday, July 19), although it has not said where in the country the plant will be built.

The battery cell manufacturing facility - which local MP Ian Liddell-Grainger says will be on the Gravity site near Bridgwater - will be one of the largest in Europe and will create thousands of jobs.

According to PA it will produce about 40 gigawatt hours of battery cells every year, enough to provide about half the battery production the UK will need by 2030, according to the Faraday Institution.

The Government is reported to have put up £500,000 in subsidies to entice Tata Sons, which owns Tata Group, to build the plant in the UK.

“The exact numbers on this will come out in the normal way. Because of the commercial sensitivities, they have to be released in the usual way,” said Energy Security Secretary Grant Shapps.

Tata Sons chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran said: “Our multi-billion-pound investment will bring state-of-the-art technology to the country, helping to power the automotive sector’s transition to electric mobility, anchored by our own business, JLR.”

The group reportedly considered a site in Spain as an alternative.

Mr Chandrasekaran added: “I also want to thank His Majesty’s Government, which has worked so closely with us to enable this investment.”

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “Tata Group’s decision to build their new gigafactory here in the UK – their first outside of India – is a huge vote of confidence in Britain. This will be one of the largest ever investments in the UK automotive sector.

“It will not only create thousands of skilled jobs for Britons around the country, but it will also strengthen our lead in the global transition to electric vehicles, helping to grow our economy in clean industries of the future.”

Mr Shapps said the investment will bring 4,000 jobs directly and thousands more indirectly, such as in supply chains.

Tata did not mention how many jobs it expects to create.

“It is a big deal. It is probably the biggest ever UK car investment — or certainly the biggest for 40 years,” Mr Shapps told Sky News.

“This will produce a gigafactory that can produce about half the UK’s electric vehicles batteries.

“It has been nine months in negotiations, I’ve been involved with it throughout, including going to India.”

Earlier this year, startup Britishvolt went out of business. Despite having little experience in the sector, it had promised to build the UK’s first gigafactory.

But it was unable to raise enough money to push ahead with the plans.

Vauxhall maker Stellantis said in May it would struggle to make electric cars in the UK without changes to the Brexit deal.

It said it was vital to “reinforce the competitiveness of the UK by establishing battery production”.

West of England’s Labour mayor Dan Norris said: “After so many false starts, this is fantastic news for the West of England.

“Local workers are delighted to see 9,000 new green jobs wrapped up in a Union Flag. It shows our region is leading the way as the best place to invest in net zero.

“Given the scale of the investment, we have a real opportunity to shape the green jobs revolution, not just here in the west, but nationally and internationally, to ensure these jobs of the future are high quality, well paid and unionised.

“However, the lack of a coherent industrial strategy means this historically rail-connected site will only be accessible by road. That’s a mistake.”