Northvolt’s bankruptcy administrator about selling the factory: 'It gets harder with each passing day'

In late May, two months after Swedish battery giant Northvolt filed for bankruptcy, the court-appointed administrator Mikael Kubu announced that the company would begin winding down its production – with operations set to halt completely by 30 June.

At the time, there were still glimmers of hope that a buyer might step in to salvage parts of the business. But those prospects now appear to be fading fast. Speaking to Impact Loop on Thursday, Kubu described the odds of a sale as slim:

"It’s clear that the chances of finding a solution for continued battery production in Skellefteå are very small at the moment. There’s still some interest, but it’s getting harder with each passing day."

It sounds like it's leaning more towards there not being a sale of the business itself, but rather of assets or parts of the operation?

"That could be the case."

Until recently, a scaled-down version of Northvolt’s battery cell production had been kept alive in Skellefteå – a town in northern Sweden – thanks to ongoing purchases from Swedish truckmaker Scania.

However, that lifeline was cut when Scania announced it would switch to Chinese battery supplier CATL. Following that decision, the bankruptcy administrator confirmed that preparations to fully shut down the Skellefteå facility were now underway.

Peter Carlsson: "High hopes"

When Impact Loop interviewed the co-founder and previous CEO of Northvolt, Peter Carlsson, he opened up about the tough times but also about his hopes that someone would buy the battery factory:

"It has really been an emotional but also tough rollercoaster during this time. I actually have high hopes that we and the administrator will be able to find good solutions for how this work can continue. But it’s important not to wait too long. It's the combination of assets and employees that creates the real value."