Northvolt raises $ 1.1 billion to increase battery production in Sweden
The Swedish battery cell manufacturer Northvolt has raised USD 1.1 billion in convertible bonds to expand its production of battery cells and cathode materials in Europe. The fresh capital comes from Volkswagen and a number of other investors.
In addition to the Volkswagen Group, Northvolt says that the other investors are AMF, AP Funds 1-4 (through joint venture 4 to 1 Investments), ATP, Ava Investors, Baillie Gifford, Compagnia di San Paolo through Fondaco Growth, Folksam Group, Goldman Sachs Asset Management , IMAS Foundation, Olympia Group, OMERS Capital Markets, PCS Holding, Swedbank Robur and TM Capital – in alphabetical order, not in the size of their investment. Northvolt does not disclose the distribution of $ 1.1 billion, or the equivalent of 1.06 billion euros, among investors.
With the current convertible bond issue, Northvolt has secured almost $ 8 billion in equity and borrowed capital since 2018. During the same period, the company has won orders worth $ 55 billion (EUR 53 billion) from customers including BMW, Fluence, Scania, Volvo Cars and Volkswagen. group. In order to be able to deliver to these key customers, the corresponding production capacity is currently being built up.
Since the end of 2021, Northvolt has been manufacturing battery cells in series at the battery factory in Skellefteå called ‘Northvolt One’ and the cells have also been delivered since last spring. Additional battery factories are planned in Borlänge, Gothenburg (for Volvo’s factory in Torslanda) and in Heide in Schleswig-Holstein (called Northvolt Drei). Through its large-scale recycling program, Northvolt intends to meet 50 percent of its raw material needs from recycled batteries by 2030.
“We are proud and grateful for the support and trust from these world-class investors and partners,” said Northvolt’s co-founder and CEO Peter Carlsson. “We will continue to work hard to keep the promise we have given them to build the world’s greenest battery.”