Swedish battery giant's collapse shows how China changed the EV game
Ex-Tesla leaderʼs European battery venture ends in bankruptcy after 8-year run. Chinese dominance in EV market and production issues led to the fall of a company that raised over $15B
In mid-2016 Peter Carlsson left Tesla to start a ground-breaking project: a European battery maker called Northvolt. The company got big-name partners (VW and BMW) and lots of money - more than $15B from investors and govt support
The timing seemed perfect: EVs were getting popular; Europe wanted its own battery production; and talented people like Paolo Cerruti joined to help make it work But things didnt go as planned. By late-23‚ the company had to file for bankruptcy - making it one of Europes biggest start-up failures
China changed everything in the EV world: they make about 80% of all batteries now and process most of the materials needed for them. Their govt put in almost $250B (from 09 to 23) to help their EV industry grow - thats how they got ahead of everyone else
The auto world is changing fast: EVs grew 35% in 22‚ and theyre simpler to make than regular cars. This means:
- Less parts needed
- Fewer workers required
- Different skills wanted
- New factory setups
The world of international laws and separation of commerce from government were just blips in history - not the end of it
Western car-makers are trying to catch up but its hard: Last year Jim Farley (Fordʼs boss) went to Shanghai and brought back Chinese cars to study. Europe has its own problems - they want clean cars but dont want Chinese firms taking over their market. Hungary already got $8B from Chinas biggest battery maker in 23
The West needs to think different now: instead of trying to catch up maybe its time to jump ahead with new tech - like fusion nuclear power or different kinds of batteries. The old fairy-tale ending isnt coming back; its time to write a new story
