Northvolt Owners Back Plan to Keep Making Batteries
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Northvolt AB shareholders approved the bankrupt electric vehicle supplier’s plan to keep building battery cells while it seeks new funding to restructure under Chapter 11 protection.
Shareholders “voted to affirm the continuation of Northvolt’s business” at an extraordinary general meeting in Stockholm on Jan. 8, the company said in a statement.
The vote was scheduled in December under a Swedish law that requires shareholder approval to continue operations once equity falls below one-half of registered share capital.
While Northvolt described it as “procedural,” the vote risked derailing the company’s bid to keep going and reset its finances under Chapter 11, raising cash and shedding billions of dollars in debt. The alternative is a liquidation, and an end to the high-profile European effort to make battery cells for customers such as truck maker Scania CV AB.
“This is a positive outcome that demonstrates the support of our shareholders as we seek to realize our ambition and maximize our value,” the company said.
Northvolt, whose major shareholders include Scania’s parent, Volkswagen AG, and Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s asset management arm, filed for Chapter 11 in the U.S. in November with $5.84 billion in debt in one of the largest bankruptcies of 2024.
The company received about $245 million of bankruptcy funding and has been continuing to make battery cells at its main plant in Skelleftea, Sweden, near the Arctic Circle. Its goal is to raise another round of medium-term financing and to exit Chapter 11 by the end of the first quarter.
While its mission was to create an independent and sustainable European supply chain for electric vehicles, Northvolt recently said it was discussing potential tie-ups with Asian competitors as it seeks a solution to the company’s crisis.
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