Northvolt has signed a multi-billion private placement to finance further battery cell production capacity and R&D efforts in order to meet the increasing demand of customers engaged in the transition to decarbonized, electric solutions.
The $2.75bn (€2.26bn) private placement was co-led by new investors AP funds 1-4, via the co-owned company, 4 to 1 Investments, and OMERS, one of Canada’s largest defined benefit pension plans, alongside existing investors Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Volkswagen Group.
Also participating in the equity raise are current owners AMF, ATP, Baillie Gifford, Baron Capital Group, Bridford Investments Limited, Compagnia di San Paolo through Fondaco Growth, Cristina Stenbeck, Daniel Ek, IMAS Foundation, EIT InnoEnergy, Norrsken VC, PCS Holding, Scania and Stena Metall Finans.
Including the private placement, Northvolt has now raised more than $6.5bn in equity and debt to enable an expansion plan leading up to and beyond 150GWh of deployed annual production capacity in Europe by 2030.
In addition, Northvolt has to date secured in excess of $27bn worth of contracts from key customers, including BMW, Fluence, Scania and Volkswagen, to support its plan.
The plan also includes establishing recycling capabilities to enable 50% of all its raw material requirements to be sourced from recycled batteries by 2030.
Northvolt co-founder and chief executive Peter Carlsson said: “We have a solid base of world-class investors and customers on-board who share Northvolt’s mission of building the world’s greenest battery to enable the European transition to renewable energy.”
Northvolt’s first gigafactory, Northvolt Ett, in Skellefteå, Sweden, will be expanded from the earlier plan of 40GWh to 60GWh of annual production capacity in order to meet the increased demand from key customers.
This includes a $14bn order from Volkswagen announced earlier this year.
The factory will commence production later this year.
Carlsson added: “We have been producing cells at our cell industrialization facility, Northvolt Labs, for more than a year and are excited to now bring the knowledge and technology we have developed to the north and start large-scale production.”
In order to meet its 2030 capacity target, Northvolt currently anticipates building at least two more gigafactories in Europe over the coming decade, and is actively exploring the opportunity of building the next of these in Germany.
During the same timeframe, Northvolt foresees tremendous growth in other parts of the European value chain for battery manufacturing; from processing of raw materials to component and equipment manufacturing, to production of battery cells and systems and the build-up of recycling infrastructure.
Goldman Sachs Bank Europe SE and Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc act as financial advisors to Northvolt.
Northvolt is a European supplier of sustainable, high-quality battery cells and systems.
Founded to enable the European transition to a decarbonized future, the company has made swift progress on its mission to deliver the world’s greenest lithium-ion battery with a minimal CO2 footprint.
Among Northvolt industrial partners and customers are ABB, BMW Group, Scania, Siemens, Vattenfall, Vestas and the Volkswagen Group.