Northvolt's chairman at press conference: "A sad moment"

Northvolt's press conference is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. CST at the company headquarters in Stockholm.

A large number of journalists have already gathered, including Impact Loop reporter Johann Bernövall, who will write live updates from the briefing.

Tom Johnstone, Interim Chairman of Northvolt’s Board of Directors, is set to speak.

We are now waiting to enter the venue.

10:00

We are on-site, and the press conference is about to begin.

10:05

Tom Johnstone delivers his opening comments:

"It really is with a heavy heart that we confirm that Northvolt AB has filed for bankruptcy today. This was a decision we did not take lightly. Over the last four months since we entered the Chapter 11 process, we have been engaged in an extraordinary effort to implement a financial restructuring of the company, which included widespread outreach to potential investors. We have pursued every opportunity with determination and the characteristic Northvolt spirit. Clearly this is not an outcome we had hoped for. It is one that runs counter to prevailing industrial sentiments in Europe, sentiments which have been with Northvolt since it was founded and remains with us today. These sentiments include the drive for European battery sovereignty and aspirations to deliver sustainable solutions to support the energy transition. Nevertheless, despite these exhaustive efforts, this decision represents the only realistic path forward for Northvolt and its stakeholders at this time."

Johnstone reiterates that the company will try to secure financing to keep operations running during the bankruptcy process, and that a Swedish court appointed trustee will oversee the next steps.

"We are hopeful that the outreach we have undertaken with investors as part of the Chapter 11 process will enable him to identify and secure such financing in the near term," he says. "Just to be clear, the bankruptcy process will be conducted in accordance with Swedish insolvency laws, with focus on ensuring an orderly transition for all stakeholders."

10:10

Johnstone says Norhvolt Germany and Northvolt North America are not filing for bankruptcy.

"As wholly owned subsidiaries of Northvolt AB, any decisions regarding these entities will be made by the court appointed trustee in consultation of course with the group’s lenders at the appropriate time," he says.

Johnstone thanks Northvolt employees by saying all your determination and accomplishments have been nothing short of extraordinary.”

"I am sorry we have ended this chapter today. While I have no doubt in the coming days we will see a high level of analysis on Northvolt, I'd like to remind its employees, both current and former employees, and you, of what we have accomplished in this journey."

Johnstone goes on to list the company's accomplishments:

"We have designed and delivered Europe's first homegrown lithium-ion battery cells, proving that the European battery industry was possible and fulfilling our customers' requirements with world-class products.We secured billion-dollar contracts with major European automotive customers. And we developed one of the world's most sustainable battery production processes, powered by 100 percent fossil free energy and setting a new standard for CO2 reduction in cell manufacturing. We also laid the foundation for battery recycling through Revolt, moving the industry closer to a truly circular part of the economy. … And to do all this, we brought together thousands of people from around the world, all driven by a common mission: to build the world’s greenest batteries. I say this to Northvolters, among the mix of understandable emotions you’ll be feeling today and in the coming weeks, I sincerely hope that the pride is still there, as it is for me.”

10:15:

Johnstone starts taking questions from the media.

What fundamental mistake did Northvolt make?

"I don't think this is the time to look back as to what's happened, that will come in the coming weeks. What we did very clearly is we focused the company, and we operated to improve operational output and we worked to reduce the cash outflow. In the time to come, we can certainly look back and try to see what other lessons did we learn and how can these lessons be used by our colleagues in the industry and for other industries trying to move in to a high technology industry. But today is not the day for that."

What is your message to the people who moved from all over the world to work at the factory in Skellefteå?

“We sincerely thank them, for their belief in our vision, belief in the mission that we had. And of course, as I said earlier, we are really sorry that this chapter ends this way. But be clear that we will try to see what lessons we've learned from this and see what the next chapter looks like.”

On why the company couldn’t find support from investors and lenders:

“There's varying degrees of interest. What we must also remember is the economic environment externally has changed from where it was last summer. We've had good engagement from potential parties, both from a technical viewpoint but also from a financial viewpoint. But we reached this position now where we could not see the way forward that was correct for all stakeholders. And that's why we took this very, very tough decision. … To be sure, we had constructive, open dialogue with people, but it just didn't come. You need to have two things: you need to have the funding to continue in a short period of time and you need to have a vision as to what the end game is. We looked last evening and said that we did not meet both these criteria.”

Can you say any more about Northvolt's problems with its production process?

"We have had problems in the manufacturing, we've been very open with that. Coming from my background and learning a little – let's be clear, a little about this process – it’s a very, very high-tech and complicated process. But what we've seen over the last six to nine months is significant increases in output, significant increases in yield within the factory. So the trajectory is very, very good within the factory just now. So it's moving absolutely in the right direction.”

What do you have to say to the people in Skellefteå?

"I'm really sorry. We had an all hands meeting there, just 9 o'clock this morning, and we said we're very, very sorry that this is how we've ended up. It's not what we were looking for, especially when one looks at the progress that they've made over the last months, which is truly remarkable."

Do you think you can still find a buyer?

“Be sure that we've tried all avenues ourselves beforehand, but one never knows what happens in this process. When I looked at other processes like that, buyers have suddenly appeared. I don't know who that could be, so I really don't want to speculate at this point.”

What will happen to existing orders from the likes of Porsche and Scania:

"This is something that the trustee will take over as well and look into how they manage that. And of course there's dialogue taking place with (customers). There's always discussions on on contracts, but there's nothing material that I know of."

This text will be updated!