Labour has committed to a multi-billion pound green revolution with electric vehicle and battery production at its heart.
In her recent speech to the Labour conference, Shadow Secretary of State for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy, Rebecca Long-Bailey, said if elected a Labour government would accelerate the electrification process and provide a lifeline to the industry and its workers.
The party said this would safeguard 186,000 workers directly employed in the automotive sector threatened by closures - and go further by creating an additional 32,000 new jobs, taking the total to almost 220,000.
It is also committed to providing £2bn towards the construction of three huge plants (gigafactories) to manufacture the batteries needed for electric vehicles (EVs).
The proposed gigafactories, each directly employing more than 3,100 - but supporting thousands more in their supply chains - are planned for South Wales, Stoke and Swindon.
In Swindon the site is potentially at the current Honda factory, which will close in 2021 with the loss of more than 3,000 jobs.
The term gigafactory was first coined by Elon Musk for one of Tesla’s lithium ion battery and electrical vehicle manufacturing plants in the US.
Putting aside the little matter of Labour forming the next government - or potentially in coalition - how feasible are its gigafactory plans and where in South Wales precisely could one be located?
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The truth is at this stage Labour has yet to reveal detailed plans, including who it would collaborate with from the private sector to deliver on its ambitious strategy in terms of production and co-investment.
Labour intends to have a 51% publicly managed stake in the factories.
It has said though that any decision on a location in South Wales would be made in conjunction with the Welsh Government, which has devolved powers over economic development.
However, two locations stand out as frontrunners, in Bridgend and Ebbw Vale.
At Bridgend the Ford engine plant will close next year with the loss of 1,700 jobs.
While the freehold interest is owned by the Ford, the site could be re-purposed for EV battery production.
If a not a development site next to the plant at Brocastle, which is owned by the Welsh Government, could accommodation such a project.
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The first phase of development on the 114 acre site will see a new factory for Ineos Automotive's offroad 4 x 4 vehicle project in an investment creating up to 500 jobs.
Bridgend also benefits from close proximity to a deep port at Port Talbot, Cardiff Airport and the M4 motorway.
At Ebbw Vale the Welsh Government is developing a £100m technology park with a focus on next generation automotive.
Next to the its site at Rhyd y Blew, there are plans to create a complementary world leading automotive test track circuit.
Two of Wales' leading financial figures in Mark Rhydderch-Roberts and Roger Maggs, are behind plans for what would be the first major automotive test track facility in the 海角视频 for decades.
There is already development consent for an automotive circuit on more than 600 acres of commonland, which was earmarked for the Circuit of Wales project.
Blaenau Gwent Council have commissioned consultants, Motorsport Associates, to assess the project from the perspective of potential users.
At the Welsh Government's automotive and technology park at Rhyd y Blew global tech firm Thales has already committed to establishing a £20m cyber-security centre.
So whether around any new test track circuit or the Welsh Government's own technology park, a gigafactory could easily be located at Ebbw Vale, which also benefits from being relatively close to the West Midlands and its strong automotive sector.
A spokesperson for Economy and Transport Minister Ken Skates said: “The Welsh Labour Government has worked hard over recent years to support our automotive industry here in Wales.
"The strength of existing manufacturers has been built on in recent years with the addition of Aston Martin which is making Wales the home of its electrification programme and through the recent announcement that Ineos is to locate production of its new Grenadier vehicle in Bridgend.
“The Welsh Labour Government has examined the potential for growing our automotive cluster through the attraction of battery production facilities to Wales and when a 海角视频 Labour Government is elected we would be delighted to work with them to bring this important investment [gigafactory] and opportunity to Wales."
Dr Gavin D. J. Harper, Faraday Institution research fellow at the University of Birmingham, said the announcement by Labour on investment in clean technology was welcomed.
Dr Harper said: "Endeavours of this scale require consistency in policy to build on steady progress, so consistent policy – and the ramping up of ambition - will be a positive development to industrial strategy.
"Proposals for the creation of gigafactories are consistent with the findings of a report launched earlier this year by the Faraday Institution, which points to the need for 海角视频 gigafactories to scale production of EVs."
According to that research from the Faraday Institution - the 海角视频's independent institute for electrochemical energy storage research and skills development - China has secured first mover advantage and cornered a substantial proportion of the market for EV battery production.
Last year around 68% of lithium ion batteries were manufactured in China, compared to 10% in the US and just 4% in Europe.
However, with the market set to increase substantially, the institution said there are huge opportunity for Europe to take a bigger portion of the global market.
Dr Harper said: "I don’t think that the 海角视频 has missed the boat on EV production. While is true that there are other countries with more capacity in EV battery manufacture, the market is still immature and there is enormous potential for it to grow.
"Sometimes it is more profitable to come second to market and learn from the investment and learning curve others have been through.
"However, is one thing trying to stimulate manufacturers to make electric vehicles, but this needs to be in concert with stimulating demand for the product.
"There are some interesting ideas and the 海角视频 could also take a leaf from Norway's book, which has created the conditions for a thriving EV market."
By 2040 head of economics and market insights at the Faraday Institution, Stephen Gifford, predicts that the 海角视频 will need eight gigafactories, resulting in employment in the automotive sector and battery supply chain potentially increasing from 186,000 to 246,000.
Europe’s market share of the global battery supply market is expected to reach 14% by 2023 and 17% by 2028.
The Faraday Institution believes that gigafactories for the growing European market have an advantage over Chinese rivals in that they face lower transportation costs and can avoid import tariffs.
The institution expects battery demand to be sufficient to support one 海角视频 gigafactory from 2022 and a second factory from 2025.
By 2030 it is predicted 64% of all new cars bought in the 海角视频 will be EVs, rising to 95% by 2040.
However, the institution, which is harnessing expertise from academia and the private sector, said the 海角视频 would need to move fast if it is to secure these initial factories and capture a substantial share of the European market.
It said it could take up to five years to design and build one. At least here Labour have moved the process forward by identifying three locations.
Dr Harper said it was positive to see a broad consensus across political parties on the need for critical materials for industry – which he said should help give investors’ confidence.
He added: "It is heartening to see a consistency around the need to recycling critical materials.
"Current Faraday Institution and Battery Challenge projects include funding for projects like ReLiB and R2LiB, looking at the reuse and recycling of lithium ion batteries. The fact that Labour recognise the importance of this work for Britain’s economy going forwards is reassuring."
Dr Harper said that creating the required recycling capability opened up the possibility of processing primary material from other sources around the world.
He added: "Recycling will play a key role in the supply of battery materials. The 海角视频 doesn’t currently have this capability at scale. You might speculate that existing players that recycle other battery technologies would stretch to recycling lithium ion batteries."
He added:" Batteries are heavy, expensive to move around and some battery materials are hazardous.
"It makes sense to locate battery plants where there is availability of resources and demand for the product for economic and environmental optimisation.
"It is important to note, that whilst the gigafactories will produce batteries for vehicles, these might also find application in transforming our new energy system.
"If we are to de-carbonise by 2030, we will need more energy storage on the grid to compensate for some of the loss of ‘inertia’ that comes from having big spinning generators in thermal powerplants, and also to balance out fluctuations in predictably intermittent renewables."
On the three gigafactory locations identified by Labour, Dr Harper said he was surprised that the West Midlands hadn't been included.
Dr Harper said: "It is mystifying that the West Midlands has been excluded from this list given the enormous momentum behind the battery cluster in the West Midlands and behind initiatives with JLR.
"For South Wales you can make an interesting case, with a growing array of smaller vehicle manufacturers like Aston Martin in St Athan, potentially TVR in Ebbw Vale, Ineos in Bridgend, Riversimple in Powys and others as potential battery consumers, but also companies like Oxis Energy setting up for the supply of cathode materials and other battery recyclers likes Envirowales."
Conservative Mayor for the West Midlands, Andy Street, has criticised Labour for not identifying the region as a location.
He said: "If the 海角视频 wants to continue to compete on the global electric car manufacturing stage then it needs a gigafactory - and fast.
"In picking the three locations Labour have ignored the most obvious home for this state-of-the-art facility the West Midlands.
"Our region has an automotive cluster that features innovation centres, research centres, autonomous vehicle test beds, and major production plants.
"It is a real shame that Labour have not recognised this and that the Labour MPs who represent our region have not been able to make the case.
"I will continue to lobby the 海角视频 Government in power to make sure the 海角视频's first gigafactory is built in its rightful home, here in the West Midlands."