Northvolt AB is filing for bankruptcy protection in the United States, but says the move will not jeopardize the manufacturer’s planned electric vehicle battery plant in Quebec.
The Sweden-based parent company says it and several subsidiaries have filed for a court-supervised reorganization of its debt and assets under Chapter 11 of the U.S. bankruptcy code.
However, Northvolt says its Canadian subsidiary is financed separately and “will continue to operate as usual outside of the Chapter 11 process.”
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The Northvolt plant, slated for construction about 25 kilometres east of Montreal, is a $7-billion undertaking that aims to churn out battery cells and cathode active material for electric vehicles.
But concerns around Northvolt’s financial solvency have also raised questions about a project to which Quebec and Ottawa have pledged $2.4 billion in funding.
In September, Northvolt announced it would shrink its operations in Europe and lay off 1,600 employees in Sweden, or about a fifth of its workforce
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