Summary
Lyten just bought Northvolt's remaining assets.
Battery Industry Pulse: weekly roundup.
Welcome back to another edition of my newsletter! - Week 32 2025
This week, Lyten entered a binding agreement to acquire Northvolt’s remaining assets in Sweden and Germany.
Lyten is an American lithium-sulfur battery start-up. Lyten is backed by Stellantis and FedEx. Northvolt was a Swedish lithium-ion battery company that went bankrupt this year.
If you want the backstory on Northvolt, I covered it a couple of months ago.
What Lyten is actually buying
Lyten is taking over Northvolt Ett and Ett Expansion in Skellefteå, Northvolt Labs in Västerås, and Northvolt Drei in Heide (Germany). The deal includes all remaining Northvolt IP.
On paper, the assets total about 5 billion dollars in value.
That includes 16 GWh of installed capacity, more than 15 GWh under construction, and the groundwork to push beyond 100 GWh. Västerås adds Europe’s largest and most advanced battery R&D center.
Lyten says it will rehire a significant number of laid-off workers, setting staffing site by site.
The acquisition is being fully funded through equity investment into Lyten from private investors.
This is not their first purchase from the Northvolt estate.
In November 2024, Lyten acquired the Cuberg facility in California.
In early July, Lyten announced the acquisition of Northvolt Dwa in Gdańsk, Europe’s largest BESS site, with closing expected in August 2025.
In late July, Lyten acquired Northvolt’s BESS product and IP portfolio.
In short, Lyten bought almost everything except Northvolt Systems Industrial, which Scania already purchased.
Why this can work
They are buying a built footprint at a discount. Stockholm District Court documents value the assets of Northvolt AB and Northvolt Ett at just over two billion kronor, a bit more than 180 million euros.
A gigafactory often costs a billion dollars or more, depending on size.
There is a near-term plan. Lyten intends to restart lithium-ion battery production in Skellefteå, rehire staff, and target deliveries by 2026.
The focus, at least early on, will be one customer at a time. That keeps the scope tight.
Northvolt’s late progress helps. Before production stopped, the COO said Northvolt Ett had reached a 90 percent yield and was producing about 30,000 high-quality cells per week in Skellefteå.
Lyten’s CEO, Dan Cook, told Reuters that this level of quality, delivered by a leadership group expected to join Lyten, was central to the deal. If yields sit in the 90 percent range, the ramp should be shorter.
Scania’s Gustaf Sundell said the company was satisfied with the cells it eventually received, which supports that view.
In practical terms, Lyten is buying time and learning. A factory exists. Equipment is installed. A trained workforce can return. The years of trial and error that usually define the early life of a gigafactory have already been paid for.
Why caution is healthy
Lyten is still a start-up. Headcount is about 250 to 300 people. Capital is modest compared with what Northvolt raised. Cell manufacturing burns cash quickly, and it is very complex.
Since its founding, Lyten has raised more than 625 million dollars in equity and secured LOIs for 650 million dollars in financing. That is far below the 15 billion dollars Northvolt brought in.
But, Leadership says the funding is enough.
“We have enough money to make this work,” Dan Cook told Norran, citing strong investors.
Even so, pressure is visible. Recently, The Information reported layoffs of 45 people, with cuts in parts of the research team linked to costs at the Gdańsk site.
Focus is another risk. Lyten will now run two core technologies, lithium-ion and lithium-sulfur. Two chemistries mean two learning curves, two supply chains, and two sets of tradeoffs. For now, Lyten will run the Northvolt sites on lithium-ion. Lithium-sulfur remains niche, with early volumes aimed mostly at drones.
The company is also pursuing Northvolt Six in Quebec, with a 15 GWh Phase 1 under construction.
The project list is long. It was a lot for Northvolt. It will be a lot for Lyten, especially with a 10 GWh lithium sulfur gigafactory already in the pipeline. Northvolt struggled because it launched many sites before locking in a sustained high yield at the first one. Lyten faces a similar trap if sequencing slips.
Execution experience matters too. Lyten has not yet ramped up mass production at scale. The hope is that it brings back the right Northvolt operators and engineers.
Public posts and comments from former Northvolt employees still mention management issues, which keep the spotlight on hiring and operating rhythm.
My take
Lyten has a real chance to learn from Northvolt’s mistakes and build on Northvolt’s late gains. A near 90 percent yield before the halt suggests the process can perform. If Lyten keeps the plan tight, sequences projects with care, and empowers the returning team, the ramp could be faster than many expect.
The risks are real. Two chemistries and several factories can drain cash and attention. A start-up balance sheet will feel every delay. This is a heavy operational lift.
I remain hopeful, and I wish the team well.
Now, let’s look at this week's battery market developments.
Battery Industry Pulse: Weekly Roundup
Components
Battery
Airbus subsidiary AALTO tests Amprius SiCore cells in the stratosphere
SK On to manufacture top post prismatic battery at pilot line
Solid-State Batteries May Be A 'Weapon' To Beat China, SK On Says
BESS
Portland General Electric brings 475MW of battery storage online
A huge $2 billion solar + storage project in California powers up
Tesla Energy is the world’s top global battery storage system provider again
Passengers Cars
Tesla Model Y L reportedly entered mass production in Giga Shanghai
The U.S. Military Is Buying Tesla Cybertrucks To Shoot At Them
Charging infrastructure
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