After a nearly 1 year search for a place to build a new battery factory in Norway, Morrow Batteries has inked a deal with the city of Arendal, which is located in southern Norway near the North Sea. The agreement came about after the city council agreed unanimously to approve the construction of the factory on 940 acres in the Eyde Energy Park.
“We are very happy that the final agreement has now been signed. It comes as a result of good cooperation and solid political support, Terje Andersen, CEO of Morrow Batteries, tells Elbil, the nickname for the Norwegian Electric Car Association. (Translation by Google.) “The plot in Eyde Energy Park is perfect for us and meets all the needs of a large battery cell factory, such as access to energy, infrastructure and central location in relation to raw materials and markets. We look forward to establishing ourselves in Arendal and to further cooperation.”
Construction of the battery cell factory will take place in 4 stages beginning in 2023. Each stage will have the ability to manufacture 8 GWh of batteries annually, according to Electrive. A pilot plant will be built first on the site starting later this year. According to the plan, the factory will be completed in 2026 and will require a minimum of 315 MW of power capacity, most of which will be supplied by hydro power available in the area. It is expected the factory will create 2,500 direct and indirect jobs for the local economy.
Credit: Google Maps
World’s Most Sustainable Battery Factory
The total cost of the new factory will be €470 million, a portion of which will come from the EU’s Horizon 2020 research program. Morrow Batteries says the first phase of the new factory will manufacture conventional lithium-ion battery cells. The later modules, however, will focus on “next-generation battery cell technology” such as lithium-sulfur battery cells which will use scrap materials from the Norwegian oil industry, making the lithium-sulfur value chain significantly different than what is common in Asia.
Morrow claims its new facility will be the most sustainable battery factory in the world. “We need to build alternative industries to oil and gas and be able to initiate a green turnaround,” says Andersen. The site chosen “allows us to build the facilities with a minimal carbon dioxide footprint and with minimal impact on the environment. We will use an old landfill as a parking space and the area for the first factory module is already ready for construction,” he adds.
Arendal mayor Robert Cornels Nordli is enthusiastic about the new factory, which will be designed by Exyte, an internationally recognized consulting company that has participated in more than 15 battery projects around the world for such companies as Tesla, Northvolt, and LG Energy Solution.
“The establishment of Morrow Batteries is the beginning of one of the most important events for Arendal municipality in modern times and our 300 year history,” the mayor says. “We are very pleased that the final agreement has now been approved by both parties. Eyde Energy Park is zoned for industrial purposes, so everything is well located for Morrow’s battery cell factory.”
Hat tip to Are Hansen, head of CleanTechnica’s Norway news bureau.
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