Northvolt declares bankruptcy in Sweden, raising questions about future of massive Quebec battery plant

CBC News

· Posted: Mar 12, 2025 10:01 AM EDT | Last Updated: 18 minutes ago

Northvolt, the Swedish artillery shaper with plans to physique a $7-billion mill successful Quebec, has declared bankruptcy successful Sweden.

The institution said successful a media merchandise that the determination to state bankruptcy was taken aft "an exhaustive effort to research each disposable means to unafraid a viable fiscal and operational aboriginal for the company."

Northvolt has "experienced a bid of compounding challenges successful caller months that eroded its fiscal position, including rising superior costs, geopolitical instability, consequent proviso concatenation disruptions, and shifts successful marketplace demand," the merchandise says.

The company says its North American operations are solvent.

Now, a court-appointed trustee volition find the aboriginal of Northvolt's businesses and assets, including exertion and accumulation facilities, the institution said. 

It was not instantly clear how the company's bankruptcy would impact the aboriginal of massive $7-billion electrical conveyance artillery works Northvolt is gathering successful the Montérégie portion connected Montreal's South Shore. 

In 2023, the Quebec government pledged $2.9 cardinal successful financing to unafraid the woody with Northvolt. Ottawa committed up to $1.34 cardinal to physique the works and different $3 cardinal worthy of different incentives.

So far, the Quebec authorities has invested $270 cardinal successful the task and the provincial pension investor, the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), has besides invested $200 million.

Quebec Economy Minister Christine Fréchette said successful a station connected X that the authorities was disappointed successful the situation, but said they were evaluating their options. She has antecedently said Northvolt's bankruptcy filings won't person an interaction connected the Quebec artillery plant.

"Our privation is that the controller volition commencement looking for a purchaser who volition put to instrumentality implicit each North American activities and relaunch the Montérégie project," she wrote. 

Despite the bankruptcy of Northvolt's genitor company in Sweden, Northvolt North America, a subsidiary of the Swedish company, said successful a media merchandise that it remains solvent and intends to honour its obligations and conscionable its fiscal commitments.

The Swedish authorities has indicated that it could measurement successful to enactment the company.