lyten to Acquire Most of Bankrupt Northvolt, Boosting European Battery Independence

Stockholm – U.S. battery startup Lyten has agreed to purchase most of the assets of bankrupt Swedish battery maker Northvolt,a move announced Thursday that could offer a path forward for the European company once considered the regionS competitor to Asian rivals.

lyten, a Silicon Valley-based company developing lithium-sulphur cells as a cleaner option to lithium-ion, is backed by Stellantis, the owner of Jeep, and U.S. delivery services provider FedEx.

The deal reignites hopes for European battery independence following Northvolt’s bankruptcy filing in March, which marked one of Sweden’s largest corporate failures and triggered a rapid search for a buyer. “Our plans are… in large part to pick up where the Northvolt team left off,” Lyten CEO and co-founder Dan Cook told Reuters, declining to disclose the purchase price but stating it was at a “substantial discount” to the original asset value.

Northvolt’s bankruptcy trustee stated that the deal mitigated the risk of a “complete shutdown,” while Sweden’s deputy prime minister, Ebba Busch, said the agreement positioned the country “as key to Europe’s energy independence.”

Northvolt faced criticism for overpromising and failing to deliver battery cells that met the quality standards required by clients, even with support from its largest customer, truckmaker Scania. Gustaf Sundell, Scania’s head of ventures and new business, told Reuters it was premature to determine if the group would place orders with Lyten, but expressed satisfaction with the outcome.

Lyten aims to quickly restart the flagship Skelleftea plant in northern Sweden and resume deliveries of lithium-ion battery cells in 2026. Following its acquisition of Northvolt’s energy storage business in Poland, Europe’s largest, in July, Lyten is targeting the automotive, defense, and energy storage markets.

Cook noted that several former Northvolt managers would be joining Lyten, but not founder and ex-CEO Peter Carlsson. “We are focused on developing to be the leaders in locally sourced, locally manufactured batteries for both the North American and European markets right now,” he said.

Lyten announced in July that it had secured over $200 million in additional equity investment to support its acquisitions and expansion plans. Cook stated that Lyten would demonstrate its value to Northvolt’s former customers by initially focusing on providing high yields to a single customer. Northvolt’s order book previously totaled more than $50 billion from automakers including BMW, Volkswagen, and Audi.

“We actually think they’ll come back, perhaps quicker than people believe,” Cook said.

The deal encompasses Northvolt’s projects in Sweden and Germany, as well as its intellectual property. Efforts are also underway to acquire its canadian unit. Prior to its collapse, Northvolt expanded into North America but later refocused on Sweden as its financial difficulties intensified, selling assets for nominal amounts.

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