Latest news with #DanCook
Time of India
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Time of India
Northvolt ramped up production of quality batteries before halting operations, saysn former COO
Bankrupt Swedish battery maker Northvolt had stepped up production of high-quality battery cells at its Skelleftea plant before operations were halted, a former executive said on Friday, a major factor in sealing a deal to sell the company. Northvolt, once seen as Europe's answer to dominant Chinese battery manufacturers, filed for bankruptcy in March and ceased production in June after failing to secure a buyer in time. U.S. battery startup Lyten said on Thursday it would buy most of Northvolt's assets, reviving hopes of a European battery champion. Lyten CEO Dan Cook told Reuters this week that the quality delivered by Northvolt's management team - many of whom are expected to join Lyten - was a key factor behind the deal, and that as yields had already reached the 90% range, ramp up time was expected to be relatively short. Northvolt's former Chief Operations Officer Matthias Arleth said at a press conference on Friday that the company had been producing up to 30,000 high-quality battery cells per week at Skelleftea. It was not clear what role, if any, Arleth will play going forward. Reuters reported in November that Northvolt had missed internal targets for cells deemed good enough to be delivered to clients. Gustaf Sundell, head of ventures and new business at truckmaker Scania, told Reuters on Thursday that the company had been satisfied with the quality of the Northvolt cells it eventually received. However, he said it was too early to determine whether Scania would place orders with Lyten. Piling debts Northvolt's bankruptcy trustee Mikael Kubu said that many creditors would incur significant losses, without giving further details. The company's debt totalled around $8 billion. Unsecured creditors include major shareholders Goldman Sachs and Volkswagen, whose brands Scania, Porsche and Audi, were among Northvolt's customers. Lyten, a Silicon Valley battery startup developing lithium-sulphur cells as a cleaner alternative to lithium-ion, is backed by Jeep-owner Stellantis and U.S. delivery services provider FedEx. The trustee said the acquisition of Swedish assets was expected to close by the end of October with "a bit more time" needed to close abroad.
Reuters
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Reuters
Northvolt ramped up production of quality batteries before halting operations, former COO says
STOCKHOLM, Aug 8 (Reuters) - Bankrupt Swedish battery maker Northvolt had stepped up production of high-quality battery cells at its Skellefteå plant before operations were halted, a former executive said on Friday, a major factor in sealing a deal to sell the company. Northvolt, once seen as Europe's answer to dominant Chinese battery manufacturers, filed for bankruptcy in March and ceased production in June after failing to secure a buyer in time. U.S. battery startup Lyten said on Thursday it would buy most of Northvolt's assets, reviving hopes of a European battery champion. Lyten CEO Dan Cook told Reuters this week that the quality delivered by Northvolt's management team - many of whom are expected to join Lyten - was a key factor behind the deal, and that as yields had already reached the 90% range, ramp up time was expected to be relatively short. Northvolt's former Chief Operations Officer Matthias Arleth said at a press conference on Friday that the company had been producing up to 30,000 high-quality battery cells per week at Skellefteå. It was not clear what role, if any, Arleth will play going forward. Reuters reported in November that Northvolt had missed internal targets for cells deemed good enough to be delivered to clients. Gustaf Sundell, head of ventures and new business at truckmaker Scania, told Reuters on Thursday that the company had been satisfied with the quality of the Northvolt cells it eventually received. However, he said it was too early to determine whether Scania would place orders with Lyten. Northvolt's bankruptcy trustee Mikael Kubu said that many creditors would incur significant losses, without giving further details. The company's debt totalled around $8 billion. Unsecured creditors include major shareholders Goldman Sachs and Volkswagen ( opens new tab, whose brands Scania, Porsche and Audi, were among Northvolt's customers. Lyten, a Silicon Valley battery startup developing lithium-sulphur cells as a cleaner alternative to lithium-ion, is backed by Jeep-owner Stellantis ( opens new tab and U.S. delivery services provider FedEx (FDX.N), opens new tab. The trustee said the acquisition of Swedish assets was expected to close by the end of October with "a bit more time" needed to close abroad.
Business Wire
4 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
Lyten to Acquire All Remaining Northvolt Assets in Sweden and Germany
SAN JOSE, Calif. & STOCKHOLM & HEIDE, Germany--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lyten, the global leader in lithium-sulfur batteries, announced today that it has entered into a binding agreement to acquire Northvolt's remaining assets in Sweden and Germany. The acquisition includes Northvolt Ett and Ett Expansion (Skellefteå, Sweden), Northvolt Labs (Västerås, Sweden), and Northvolt Drei (Heide, Germany). Additionally, Lyten is acquiring all remaining Northvolt intellectual property (IP), and multiple members of the current Northvolt executive team plan to join Lyten. The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed by any parties. 'This is a defining moment for Lyten,' stated Dan Cook, Lyten CEO and Co-Founder. 'Lyten's mission is to be the leading supplier of clean, locally sourced and manufactured batteries and energy storage systems in both North America and Europe. The acquisition of Northvolt's assets brings the facilities and Swedish talent to accelerate this mission by years, just at the moment when demand for Lyten lithium-sulfur batteries is growing exponentially to meet energy independence, national security, and AI data center needs.' In total, Lyten's acquisition includes assets valued at approximately $5B, including 16 GWh of existing battery manufacturing capacity, more than 15 GWh of capacity under construction, the infrastructure and plans to scale to more than 100 GWh, and the largest and most advanced battery R&D center (Västerås) in Europe. Lyten plans to rehire a significant portion of the previously laid-off workforce at these facilities and will assess staffing needs site by site. Lyten sees substantial value in retaining local expertise and is committed to building long-term employment opportunities as we restart and scale operations. Ebba Busch, Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden, stated 'Lyten's acquisition of the Northvolt assets is a win for Sweden, for the former employees of Northvolt, and for positioning Sweden as key to Europe's energy independence. We have been working closely with the Trustee and Lyten to fully support this deal and we are excited to work with Lyten moving forward to make good on the immense potential of these assets.' This acquisition is being fully funded through equity investment into Lyten from private investors. The transactions are subject to appropriate Swedish and German governmental and European agency approvals. Lyten expects the acquisitions to close in the fourth quarter of this year. Lyten has previously announced the acquisition of three other Northvolt assets. In November 2024, Lyten acquired Northvolt's Cuberg battery manufacturing facility in California. In early July, Lyten announced the acquisition of Northvolt Dwa, Europe's largest Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) manufacturing facility, located in Gdansk, Poland. The acquisition is expected to close in August 2025. And in late July, Lyten acquired Northvolt's BESS product and IP portfolio. Lyten plans to immediately restart operations in Skellefteå (Ett) and Västerås (Labs) upon close of the transaction and collaboration with Northvolt's prior anchor customers is progressing constructively. Lyten plans to immediately restart Northvolt Dwa upon close of the transaction to support rapidly growing demand for Lyten BESS in more than 20 countries. At Northvolt Drei, Lyten is working with Northvolt and the German government to continue the program to establish a battery manufacturing facility near Heide in Schleswig-Holstein, with 15 GWh of initial capacity. Lyten is also committed to pursuing the acquisition of Northvolt Six in Quebec, Canada, which is constructing a 15 GWh Phase 1 battery manufacturing facility. Lyten is actively progressing discussions with Northvolt North America, the Government of Canada, the Government of Québec and other key local stakeholders. 'The demand for European and North American made batteries is only growing,' added Lars Herlitz, Lyten Chairman and Co-Founder. 'The combination of Northvolt's world-class manufacturing assets and low-cost clean energy, Lyten's world leading lithium-sulfur battery technology, and Lyten's U.S. battery materials supply chain creates the right formula to fulfill Europe and North America's battery manufacturing ambitions.' Lyten currently manufactures lithium-sulfur batteries in Silicon Valley and is selling commercially into the rapidly growing drone and defense markets. Lyten is also preparing to launch its lithium-sulfur batteries onto the International Space Station in the coming months and has a multi-billion-dollar pipeline for BESS powered by lithium-sulfur. 'Lyten is a leader in the energy storage industry. As energy becomes a national security priority, from data centers to micro-grids, I'm proud to help secure a sustainable transformation of Germany's infrastructure and data economy.' stated Sem M. Köksal, Lyten Advisor and CEO Gsl Holding GmbH. The Trustee, Lyten, and Northvolt will be hosting a press conference in Skellefteå at 10:30am CET on Friday, August 8 to share more information about the transaction. The press conference will be live streamed at About Lyten Lyten, founded in 2015, is a supermaterial applications company that has received more than $625 million in equity investment and secured LOIs for $650M in financing from the Export Import Bank of the US. Lyten has built a proprietary materials platform, called Lyten 3D Graphene, that it uses to build better performing, lower cost, and decarbonizing products, including its next generation lithium-sulfur battery. Lyten corporate headquarters is in San Jose, CA and European headquarters is in Luxembourg. The company lists more than 540 patents granted or pending and is currently manufacturing in San Jose, CA. In November 2024, Lyten announced the acquisition of Northvolt's battery manufacturing plant in San Leandro, California to scale production to meet the demand for American made batteries. In 2024, Lyten announced its integration into Chrysler's Halcyon Concept electric vehicle and the selection of Lyten Lithium-Sulfur for demonstration on-orbit aboard the International Space Station (ISS), scheduled for launch later in 2025. Lyten is selling lithium-sulfur commercially into the rapidly growing drone and defense market. Lyten was named Fast Company's #8 Most Innovative Energy Company and named one of America's Top Green Technology Companies by Time in 2024, 2025, and been named to Silicon Valley Defense Journal's Top 100 National Security Companies from 2023 – 2025.
CNA
4 days ago
- Automotive
- CNA
US startup Lyten to buy bankrupt European battery maker Northvolt
STOCKHOLM :U.S. battery startup Lyten has agreed to buy most of bankrupt Swedish battery maker Northvolt, it said on Thursday, potentially offering a way back for the European company that was once seen as the region's answer to rivals in Asia. Lyten, a Silicon Valley battery startup developing lithium-sulphur cells as a cleaner alternative to lithium-ion, is backed by Jeep-owner Stellantis and U.S. delivery services provider FedEx. The deal revives hopes for European battery independence after Northvolt - the continent's potential rival to major Chinese electric vehicle battery makers - filed for bankruptcy in March, making it one of Sweden's largest corporate failures and sparking a frantic push to find a buyer. "Our plans are ... in large part to pick up where the Northvolt team left off," Lyten CEO and co-founder Dan Cook told Reuters, declining to disclose the purchase price beyond saying it was at a "substantial discount" to the original asset value. Northvolt's bankruptcy trustee said that the deal defused the risk of "complete shutdown", while Sweden's deputy prime minister Ebba Busch said the deal positioned the country "as key to Europe's energy independence. Northvolt has received much criticism that it had overpromised while failing to deliver battery cells deemed good enough quality for clients, even with help from its biggest customer, truckmaker Scania. Gustaf Sundell, Scania's head of ventures and new business, told Reuters it was too early to say if the group would place orders for batteries with Lyten, but it was happy with the outcome. TARGET MARKETS Lyten hopes to quickly restart the flagship Skelleftea plant in northern Sweden and resume deliveries of lithium-ion battery cells in 2026. In July it acquired Northvolt's energy storage business in Poland, Europe's largest, and is targeting automotive, defence and energy storage markets. Cook said several of Northvolt's former management would be joining Lyten, though not founder and ex-CEO Peter Carlsson. "We are focused on developing to be the leaders in locally sourced, locally manufactured batteries for both the North American and European markets right now," he said. Lyten said in July it had secured more than $200 million in additional equity investment to support its acquisitions and expansion plans. Cook said Lyten would prove its worth to Northvolt's former customers by focusing first on providing high yields to a single customer. Northvolt's order book once totalled more than $50 billion from automakers such as BMW, Volkswagen and Audi. "We actually think they'll come back, perhaps quicker than people believe," said Cook. The deal includes Northvolt's projects in Sweden and Germany, as well as its intellectual property. Work was also underway to acquire its Canadian unit.
Reuters
4 days ago
- Automotive
- Reuters
US startup Lyten to buy bankrupt European battery maker Northvolt
STOCKHOLM, Aug 7 (Reuters) - U.S. battery startup Lyten has agreed to buy most of bankrupt Swedish battery maker Northvolt, it said on Thursday, potentially offering a way back for the European company that was once seen as the region's answer to rivals in Asia. Lyten, a Silicon Valley battery startup developing lithium-sulphur cells as a cleaner alternative to lithium-ion, is backed by Jeep-owner Stellantis ( opens new tab and U.S. delivery services provider FedEx (FDX.N), opens new tab. The deal revives hopes for European battery independence after Northvolt - the continent's potential rival to major Chinese electric vehicle battery makers - filed for bankruptcy in March, making it one of Sweden's largest corporate failures and sparking a frantic push to find a buyer. "Our plans are ... in large part to pick up where the Northvolt team left off," Lyten CEO and co-founder Dan Cook told Reuters, declining to disclose the purchase price beyond saying it was at a "substantial discount" to the original asset value. Northvolt's bankruptcy trustee said that the deal defused the risk of "complete shutdown", while Sweden's deputy prime minister Ebba Busch said the deal positioned the country "as key to Europe's energy independence. Northvolt has received much criticism that it had overpromised while failing to deliver battery cells deemed good enough quality for clients, even with help from its biggest customer, truckmaker Scania. Gustaf Sundell, Scania's head of ventures and new business, told Reuters it was too early to say if the group would place orders for batteries with Lyten, but it was happy with the outcome. Lyten hopes to quickly restart the flagship Skelleftea plant in northern Sweden and resume deliveries of lithium-ion battery cells in 2026. In July it acquired Northvolt's energy storage business in Poland, Europe's largest, and is targeting automotive, defence and energy storage markets. Cook said several of Northvolt's former management would be joining Lyten, though not founder and ex-CEO Peter Carlsson. "We are focused on developing to be the leaders in locally sourced, locally manufactured batteries for both the North American and European markets right now," he said. Lyten said in July it had secured more than $200 million in additional equity investment to support its acquisitions and expansion plans. Cook said Lyten would prove its worth to Northvolt's former customers by focusing first on providing high yields to a single customer. Northvolt's order book once totalled more than $50 billion from automakers such as BMW ( opens new tab, Volkswagen ( opens new tab and Audi. "We actually think they'll come back, perhaps quicker than people believe," said Cook. The deal includes Northvolt's projects in Sweden and Germany, as well as its intellectual property. Work was also underway to acquire its Canadian unit. Before its collapse, Northvolt expanded across the Atlantic but later refocused on Sweden as its financial crisis deepened, selling assets for nominal sums.
