In the autumn of 2017, Northvolt announced that it had chosen Skellefteå for its first large battery factory.
Since then, a number of larger projects have been added to the list, including in Gothenburg, Gdansk, German Heide, and Montréal.
In 2023, Northvolt was hit by a series of setbacks, incurred a loss of billions and was also shaken by several fatal accidents at the factory in Skellefteå.
This year, the problems have escalated with delivery problems, delays, and a heavily strained economy.
Some key dates:
16 January: Northvolt is granted a so-called green loan of over 50 billion kronor from, among others, 24 business banks.
6 March: After a period marked by delivery problems from the factory in Skellefteå, the official groundbreaking ceremony takes place for the factory in Torslanda, a joint project with Volvo Cars. According to Northvolt's CEO Peter Carlsson, the situation has begun to improve slightly.
We have also seen that we have entered the first quarter with steady improvements week by week, he tells TT.
19 June: Northvolt backs down from plans to build a factory in Borlänge with around 1,000 employees.
20 June: BMW withdraws a billion-order from Northvolt, worth approximately 22 billion kronor.
2 July: Peter Carlsson says in an interview with Dagens Industri that they are considering slowing down some of the international investments to focus on "the core of the business".
We have been a bit too aggressive in our expansion plans and that's what we're reviewing now, he says.
19 August: Northvolt's planned new share issue, which was intended to bring in 15 billion kronor, is going slowly, reports Dagens Industri.
In the following weeks, there are increasingly reports that Northvolt's economy is heavily strained and that the company has significant liquidity problems.
9 September: Northvolt announces that part of the factory in Skellefteå will be closed, affecting around 300 employees. On the same day, it emerges that the factory in Canadian Montréal may be delayed by over a year.
14 September: Northvolt imposes a total stop on all expenses, reports Norran.
20 September: People who have come from other countries for a job at Northvolt have been laid off on their first day, reports Ekot on Sveriges Radio.
23 September: Northvolt calls a crisis meeting with staff and announces that 1,600 people will be laid off, including 1,000 in Skellefteå, 400 in Västerås, and 200 in Stockholm.
