Northvolt Files for Bankruptcy as Europe’s EV Crisis Deepens
Northvolt AB filed for bankruptcy protection in the US after failing to secure a lifeline for its battery-cell business in a faltering market for electric vehicles.
The Swedish company filed for Chapter 11 in the Southern District of Texas, it said in a statement on Thursday.
The court process protects the company from creditors, allowing operations to continue as it restructures its balance sheet.
Northvolt said its main factory will operate as usual during the reorganization. “The company will continue to make deliveries to customers while fulfilling obligations to critical vendors and payment of wages to employees,” according to the statement.
The move caps months of talks with owners, customers, and creditors to find a way for Europe’s rare homegrown maker of EV batteries to continue operations. The company slashed jobs and nixed expansion plans in a bid to overcome a cash squeeze that intensified over the autumn after it lost a key contract and was unable to access $1.5 billion in loan guarantees.
