BMW Cancels $2.15 Billion Battery Cells Contract With Northvolt

It was in 2020 that the BMW Group and Northvolt, announced a strategic partnership, for the latter to provide battery cells to the company. Now, however, German media Handelsblatt and Manager Magazin have reported that the Swedish lithium-ion battery maker couldn’t deliver on time on a long-term supply contract for battery cells agreed with BMW in 2020. This has led to the BMW Group cancelling the contract which was worth $2.15 billion.

BMW had ordered Northvolt’s cells for its fifth generation of batteries. These were to be manufactured in Sweden from the beginning of. In fact, they were to be produced using 100 per cent renewable energy. These cells will still be made and shared with BMW and we expect the Vision Neue Klasse to be equipped with them. This is clear from the statement that a BMW spokesperson made saying, “Northvolt and the BMW Group have jointly decided to focus Northvolt's activities on the goal of developing next-generation battery cells."

Earlier this year Northvolt announced it had raised $5 billion to enable the expansion of Northvolt Ett in northern Sweden and it broke ground on a battery gigafactory in Heide, Germany, telling the world how it was committed to deliver.