Northvolt’s fortunes took a more decisive turn when BMW canceled a $2 billion contract in June 2024. The battery manufacturer had been unable to deliver on time. To conserve cash, it laid off 1,600 employees and sold the assets of its Cuberg division, a Bay Area solid-state battery startup it acquired in 2021.

The bankruptcy of battery cell maker Northvolt, once the leader of Sweden's green industrial boom, is a huge blow to the country's north and particularly the small town of Skelleftea. The town, founded 180 years ago as a mining city to serve the surrounding mineral-rich mountains,

By Marie Mannes STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -Battery cell maker Northvolt has filed for bankruptcy in Sweden, the company said on Wednesday, marking one of the country's largest corporate failures and effectively ending Europe's best hope of developing a rival to challenge China.