The Jaguar I-Pace. Jaguar Land Rover has ambitions to build its own battery plant

Chinese and Japanese battery makers are mulling plans for factories in Britain to supply the country’s fast-growing electric-car market.

Japanese technology giant Panasonic and BYD, which is building the world’s biggest car-battery factory in China, are understood to have approached the government in recent months about building plants in Britain.

A Chinese delegation, including executives from BYD, is understood to have met Theresa May at a low- emissions car summit in Birmingham this month. However, industry sources said BYD and Panasonic had so far had no success with their efforts to secure significant financial backing from the government.

Support is largely limited to the Faraday Challenge, a £246m fund for battery research, usually paid out in small sums.

A Westminster source denied the two companies