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Local Sweden
5 days ago
- Business
- Local Sweden
Ex-Northvolt CEO suspected of negligence in worker's death
The ex-CEO of Swedish battery maker Northvolt, which went bankrupt in March, will be questioned over suspicions a failure to follow safety protocols caused a factory worker's death. Advertisement Peter Carlsson, former chief executive of the once buzz-generating startup, is being investigated along with others over an explosion at the company's factory in Skellefteå in northern Sweden in November 2023. A 25-year-old employee suffered severe burns and died after fighting for his life for several weeks. "He will be questioned by the police today, Friday or next week," Prosecutor Christer Jarlås told AFP, adding an appointment had been made with the suspect's lawyer. Jarlås said Carlsson would formally be informed that he is suspected of a "work environment offence" and "causing the death of another" in connection with the interrogation. The prosecutor said he intends to make Carlsson a formal suspect on the basis of his personal responsibility as CEO for making sure safety protocols were adhered to. "This is an offence where a person in a position of responsibility within the company failed to take all the measures required by workplace safety legislation," Jarlås said. "And this led to the death of an employee. If all the legal measures had been taken, it is very likely that the victim would have survived," he added. Advertisement The failure stemmed from an inadequate analysis of the risks associated with the workplace, according to the prosecutor. The factory, Northvolt Ett, was not classified as an area with a risk of explosion or fire, but only as one where there was a risk of exposure to chemicals. The 25-year-old man "was wearing protective clothing suitable for this type of risk, but not clothing designed to protect against fire or explosions", Jarlås said. "The clothes he was wearing also caught fire, which contributed to his injuries and subsequent death in hospital." Founded in 2016, Northvolt had been seen as a cornerstone of European attempts to catch up with Asia and the United States in the production of battery cells, the crucial component of electric vehicles. Northvolt had struggled under a mountain of debt, slow demand and production delays, when it applied for bankruptcy in Sweden on March 12. The court-appointed trustee managing the bankruptcy had intended to maintain production at Northvolt as they searched for a buyer, but announced earlier this month it would halt production at the end of June – as it only had one customer, truck maker Scania.
Time of India
23-05-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
Northvolt to wind down battery making in Sweden by the end of June
Swedish automotive battery maker Northvolt , which declared bankruptcy in March, plans to wind down its remaining battery cell production in the Nordic country by the end of June, its trustee said on Thursday. Northvolt filed for bankruptcy in Sweden on March 12, making it one of the country's largest corporate failures and effectively ending Europe's best hope of developing a rival to challenge China. While the search for a buyer of the Swedish battery cell making business continued, there was no realistic prospect for a purchaser to assume control in the near term, bankruptcy trustee Mikael Kubu said in a statement on Thursday. "A gradual wind-down of battery cell production in Northvolt Ett will be initiated, with the objective of ceasing production by 30 June," Kubu said, referring to the company's plant in the Swedish town of Skelleftea , its main business. At the same time, there are interested parties and potential buyers for various business operations within the Northvolt group, and negotiations are ongoing at varying stages of progress, the bankruptcy trustee added. Northvolt said at the time of the March filing that its plant in northern Sweden would continue to run in the short term. It later received financial guarantees from key stakeholders to maintain a scaled-down continuation of its operations. The EV battery maker initially sought US Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November as its cash pile dwindled and it scrambled to secure funds, but it eventually failed to raise the cash needed.
Local Sweden
22-05-2025
- Automotive
- Local Sweden
Bankrupt Swedish battery maker Northvolt to end production in June
Swedish electric car battery maker Northvolt, which filed for bankruptcy in March, will stop production at its main factory in Sweden in June, the court-appointed bankruptcy trustee said on Thursday. Advertisement Founded in 2016, Northvolt had been seen as a cornerstone of European attempts to catch up with Asia and the United States in the production of battery cells, the crucial component of electric vehicles. Mikael Kubu, the trustee managing the bankruptcy process, said in March that he hoped that the ailing company could "maintain production" while they searched for a buyer. "The bankruptcy estate has been able to continue battery cell production with a limited number of employees, supported by the existing customer," Kubu said in a statement. However, Northvolt only had a single customer left, truck maker Scania. Advertisement "This arrangement is not sustainable in the long term for a single stakeholder, nor for the bankruptcy estate itself," he added. Kubu said that as a consequence "a gradual wind-down of battery cell production" would be initiated at the company's main factory Northvolt Ett in Skellefteå with the objective of ending production by June 30th. The trustee added that "efforts to identify a purchaser remain ongoing." Northvolt had struggled under a mountain of debt, slow demand and production delays, when it applied for bankruptcy in Sweden on March 12th. Later that month, Kubu announced that more than half of the company's 5,000 staff would be laid off, with around 1,700 kept on during the bankruptcy process. At the time, Kubu told news agency TT that continuing operations during the bankruptcy process was "likely crucial to be able to sell the business entirely or partially". The company had filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States in November to buy time to find new investors, but its efforts ultimately failed, leaving its 5,000 employees with an uncertain future.
