Northvolt AB is a Swedish battery developer and manufacturer, specialising in lithium-ion technology for electric vehicles.

[4] Founded in 2015 by two former Tesla executives, it commissioned its first manufacturing plant in Skellefteå, Sweden in 2021 and announced plans for five others in Europe and North America.

[5] The company was founded as SGF Energy in 2015 by Peter Carlsson [sv] and Paolo Cerruti (now CEO Northvolt North America) who were working in Supply Chain and Operations Planning at Tesla Motors prior to that.

In total, the investments amounted to US$1 billion, framed as a way to challenge what was reported as the dominance of Tesla, Inc. and Asian companies such as Toyota and Nissan on the market for electric vehicle batteries.

[4] News website EURACTIV stated in an article that "Northvolt is quickly building a reputation as the EU’s go-to company for home-grown batteries.

"[10] On the same day, it was announced that Northvolt had been issued loans amounting to US$1.6 billion from a consortium of commercial banks, pension funds and other financial institutions.

[21][22] In 2024, the Northvolt factory in Sweden garnered attention when three employees died outside their work shifts, all within a few months despite being seemingly healthy.

[24] Swedish police launched a criminal investigation, which Northvolt welcomed saying the incidents were "tragic", but also stressing that the factory employs over 5,000 people, implying that the deaths are not as statistically significant as they may appear at first glance.

[27][28] In December, 2024 the Swedish police concluded their investigation and found no evidence that the deaths were linked to any crime or hazardous exposures.

The Northvolt Labs project in Västerås was paused, but the company would retain the fundamental platforms to enable continued product development.

[34] On December 4, 2024, Northvolt announced that it would sell its electric industrial battery division in an effort to cut costs and shrink its business.

[clarification needed][38] When finished, it would be the largest factory in Swedish history, possibly creating challenges for newcomers and the existing community.

[41] In late December 2021, the company announced that Northvolt Ett, with 500 workers, had produced its first batch of prismatic cells, as part of its machinery commissioning process.

[citation needed] At the beginning of 2022, the company announced its intention to build another battery factory in Dithmarschen near Heide, Germany.

[49][50] On October 30th, 2024, Volvo Cars announced to invoke its redemption rights to acquire Northvolt’s shares in NOVO Energy.

[8][53] Initially the factory intended to start production in 2026, but this timeline is now likely delayed 12 to 18 months according to Quebec official Pierre Fitzgibbon.