Vattenfall supports major battery production project in Sweden
Vattenfall is supporting plans to build Europe’s largest lithium battery factory in Sweden with a SEK 5 million investment in the project company Northvolt. Demand for batteries and energy storage is expected to increase substantially with the energy transition.
“Vattenfall has a clear strategy of supporting the energy transition and climate-smart solutions. Electricity storage will be a significant factor in the transition, mostly in the transport sector and also the energy system at large. Northvolt is today the most interesting and exciting battery project in Europe,” says Andreas Regnell, Vattenfall’s Head of Strategy and member of Northvolt’s advisory board.
Northvolt AB (previously SGF Energy AB) is managed by CEO Peter Carlsson, with a background in the American EV manufacturer Tesla as its VP Supply Chain. The construction of the battery factory is planned to begin during the second half of 2018, and large-scale production is expected to start at the end of 2020.
The factory is aimed to become the largest of its kind in Europe, supplying the transport sector and other industries with energy storage solutions.
“Of course, it’s very valuable for us to have one of the Nordics biggest energy companies involved and investing in Northvolt’s plan to construct Europe’s largest battery factory. Our investment aims to enable the fossil-free energy systems of the future. We are very happy that Vattenfall wants to join us on this journey and we believe it is a win-win situation for society as a whole,” says Peter Carlsson, CEO at Northvolt AB.
Following the investment will own a minor share in Northvolt. Besides Vattenfall, the Swedish Energy Agency and the Swedish public innovation agency Vinnova, among others, have provided Northvolt with financing.
Electrification is a key element in Vattenfall’s strategy. Vattenfall has been working actively for a number of years to enable the electrification of the automotive sector in the main markets of Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands.
Last autumn Vattenfall launched InCharge, a partner-based charging network. Through partnerships Vattenfall aims at building northern Europe’s largest charging network for electric vehicles. Vattenfall also recently announced that the company’s service and company car fleet, comprising 3,500 vehicles, will be replaced with electric or hybrid vehicles within a five-year period.
Source:vattenfall
