Sweden’s Northvolt will build a battery plant in northern Germany
The Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt will build a battery factory of 4 billion euros (4.44 billion dollars), 60 gW battery factory in the northern German city of Heide.
“Northvolt Drei” in the state of Schleswig-Holstein will be the company’s third production facility of this size and the first outside Sweden.
Northvolt says the Giga plant will employ 3,000 people and will produce its first lithium-ion batteries for the European market by the end of 2025. The company is also planning a battery recycling facility on the North Sea coast.
“At Heide, we really found a place where we could combine all our requirements: attract talent and feel support for our quest to build the world’s greenest batteries,” said Northvolt CEO Peter Carlsson says at a press conference announcing the facility. “With the energy mix in Schleswig-Holstein, with the sea breeze coming in, but also with the connection to Denmark and Norway in the energy flow we saw that this is probably the best place for us Germany to build this lineup. “
Germany is Europe leading EV battery production site with 485 gWh capacity in existing and planned facilities, according to Handelsblatt business magazine. Other companies that have recently built or are planning facilities in Germany includes CATL, SVOLT, PSA Group and Tesla.
“Germany Trade & Invest has been working closely with Northvolt since the end of 2019 to find a location for the company’s German production facility, and we encouraged them to explore locations in the north of the country as well as other regions due to the availability of renewable energy. Of Germany coasts ”, says Stefan di Bitonto, a vehicle specialist at the Federal Bureau of Economic Development.
“Northvolt’s planned gig factory in Heide is another indication that the automotive industry in Germany expands beyond its traditional mounts, as mobility is reconsidered during Of Germany transition to clean energy, he says.