Sweden’s battery maker Northvolt raises $2.75 billion, expands factory to 60GWh

Stockholm-based sustainable lithium-ion battery maker Northvolt has raised $2.75 billion in a private placement co-led by Swedish pension funds AP1, AP2, AP3, AP4, and OMERS Capital Markets alongside existing investors Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Volkswagen Group. In the equity raise existing investors AMF, ATP, Baillie Gifford, Baron Capital Group, Bridford Investments Limited, Compagnia di San Paolo, Cristina Stenbeck, Daniel Ek, IMAS Foundation, EIT InnoEnergy, Norrsken VC, PCS Holding, Scania, and Stena Metall Finans all participated. The funding is expected to further advance battery cell production capacity.

Including the private placement, Northvolt has raised over $6.5 billion in equity and debt financing and is eyeballing a 150+gigawatt annual production capacity in Europe by 2030. In line with its commitment to sustainability, Northvolt reports that planned recycling capabilities see at least 50% of raw materials being sourced from recycled batteries by the 2030 target. The firm has secured over $27 billion in contracts with top brands including BMW, Fluence, Scania, and Volkswagen.

In order to meet these ambitious goals based on strong customer demand, Northvolt will use the new capital to expand its previously planned 40GWh factory by 50%, upping the wattage to 60GWh. Likewise, at least two more gigafactories are on Northvolt’s roadmap.

“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,” comments co-founder and CEO, Peter Carlsson.