this post was submitted on 27 Nov 2024
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The Swedish battery maker filed for bankruptcy last week, dashing ambitions for the European electric vehicles sector – and leaving significant EU loans outstanding

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[–] poVoq@slrpnk.net 16 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Exactly what I feared. This had a strong "stupid government money cash grab" smell for a while now 🤦‍♂️

[–] CAVOK@lemmy.world 15 points 3 weeks ago

Sad but not unexpected. Battery tech is hard and will probably need gov't money for a while to get it up and running. China did it like that, why not the EU?

Not saying that we should keep funding Northvolt, but clearly something needs to be done.

[–] tal@lemmy.today 10 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

https://pitchbook.com/news/articles/who-has-the-most-to-lose-from-northvolts-failure

#Shareholder fallout

10 largest shareholders in Northvolt

Name Ownership stake
Volkswagen Finance Luxemburg 21%
Goldman Sachs 19.2%
Vargas Holding 7.2%
Rocarma Consulting 6.7%
Arbejdsmarkedets Tillægspension 5.1%
Baillie Gifford 4.8%
4 to 1 Investments Kommanditbolag 3.5%
AMF Pensionsförsäkring 2.8%
BMW España Finance 2.8%
Stichting IMAS Foundation 2.4%
Total 75.5%
Northvolt executive management,employees, advisors,board members 9.2%
Other investors 15.2%
[–] CAVOK@lemmy.world 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Something funny is going on with that table. I can't see it, but it's clearly there if you click the "view source" button.

[–] federalreverse@feddit.org 4 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

I can see it in Voyager and also in Eternity (though Eternity fails to make the second column visible).

[–] tal@lemmy.today 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Might be too wide for your phone screen and font settings; Eternity can scroll the table, though, if you drag.

[–] federalreverse@feddit.org 1 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

True. But scrolling sideways conflicts with the downvote gesture (I could turn that off, but my main client is Voyager anyway).

[–] CAVOK@lemmy.world 1 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

Can't see it in Firefox on Windows.

Edit: Works fine in jerboa though.

[–] Murvel@lemm.ee 9 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

Lmao, what kind of garbage article is this?! In the headline, the say Northvolt filed for bankruptcy, and in the text, they claim Northvolt filed for bankruptcy protection. Like idk, there's a huge fucking difference between the two...

What actually happened is that Norhtvolt filed for Chapter 11 in the US, also called reconstruction.

[–] 0x815@feddit.org 5 points 3 weeks ago

Yes, this Euronews article doesn't make sense.

Northvolt says that operations to continue as usual during Chapter 11 reorganization process, with company meeting obligations to customers, vendors and employees. Voluntary reorganization facilitates access to approximately $145 million in cash collateral and $100 million debtor-in-possession financing (from Scandinavian truck maker Scania). This is not even mentioned in the article.

In a nutshell, the liquidity crisis Northvolt faces is serious, we must not downplay that, but it's far from what the article suggests for now. It's not a collapse.

[–] tal@lemmy.today 1 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Northvolt filed for bankruptcy, and in the text, they claim Northvolt filed for bankruptcy protection. Like idk, there's a huge fucking difference between the two...

Bankruptcy is a legal status that provides protection from creditors when you're out of funds to pay them. Basically, suspends their ability to compel payment of your debts to them while a court addresses the situation.

[–] Murvel@lemm.ee 1 points 3 weeks ago

Yeah, that's the Bancruptcy Protection that they mentioned, but the article get the two completely mixed up..

[–] bacondragonoverlord@feddit.org 7 points 3 weeks ago

I really think we shouldn't jump to conclusions just yet. It should be expected that when you just lost a large customer (BMW order for 2 Billion) that the finances of your company look bad. But that's what insolvency is for isn't it?

Also to touch upon the massive amount of money the EU is potentially on the hook for, without it we would not have ever had the chance of a European Battery Powerhouse. Nothing ventured nothing gained.