– The potential for value creation is NOK 90 billion until 2030. Norway will of course position itself here, says Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre. A new chapter will be written in Norway’s first battery adventure. The battery technology called lithium-ion will drive us into the future towards the climate promises for 2050. With great significance for the low-emission society and our electrical future. Not least for our cars, ferries, trucks and bicycles. This is the plan of the government In several places in Norway, battery factories are being built and the international competition is enormous. Norway’s advantage is a lot of renewable energy that provides cheap electricity and good conditions for the battery industry. This is especially true in northern Norway. The largest project, the gig factory Freyr in Mo i Rana, will in the long term be responsible for battery production worth NOK 180 billion annually. Some believe it could replace oil and gas revenues. The news came today during the Minister of Trade and Industry’s visit to Mo i Rana. Here he presented Norway’s first battery strategy. It is a ten-point plan for how Norway will become a leading producer and develop what is called a profitable battery value chain. How Norway will become a battery power In the new battery strategy, the government has reduced ten points that will contribute to making Norway a great power in the world when it comes to battery production. Take leadership in sustainability in the entire battery value chain Promote Norway as an attractive host country for green investments Enter into an industrial partnership with central countries Provide capital, loans and guarantees that trigger private capital Promote access to expertise Facilitate more renewable power supply Contribute to plots and other central infrastructure Ensure supervised, efficient and coordinated public processes Support for growing pilot municipalities Leadership of tomorrow’s battery solutions and utilization of digital technology opportunities The goals of the government are great. HISTORICAL: – Let it be clear, we will reach the climate goals in the Paris Agreement and we will take into account nature and biological diversity. Photo: NFD – We will attract the large investments and gig factories in Norway. And we will show leadership in the entire battery factory chain. It is about everything from the extraction of minerals to batteries, to the use of renewable energy, says the Minister of Trade and Industry. To attract the big giga factories According to a report prepared by Sintef, Europe will need 55 new giga factories over the next 8 years. It is only to satisfy the electric car market. By 20150, the world needs 600 new battery factories, according to Rystad Energy. The demand for battery will increase from the current 300 GWh (300 million kilowatt hours) to 4,900 GWh. – We will show the world why they should come to Norway to be part of this industry, says Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre. BIG PLANS: Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre visits Freyr in Mo i Rana Photo: Lars-Petter Kalkenberg This has major consequences for the municipalities and local communities. It sets requirements for housing construction, cultural offerings, construction of roads and plots. But only if the state shows up, says Vestre: – If Norway seizes the opportunity, the Norwegian value chain for batteries can employ tens of thousands of people and have a turnover of at least NOK 90 billion by 2030. Global demand is growing exponentially. Freyr’s chairman and founder, Torstein Dale Sjøtveit, is satisfied with the investment: – We are very pleased with the indicated support of NOK 4 billion in loans and guarantees to Freyr. It will be a catalyst for securing additional capital for our development plans. – This is history The demand for batteries has almost tripled since 2018 and the global market can be up to 20 times as large in the next eight years. – This will be one of the largest factories in Europe, says Freyr CEO Tom Einar Jensen. They will operate the plant in Mo with just over 600 people, and have an ambition to eliminate CO2 emissions. – I am very happy that we contribute with loans and guarantees for four billion kroner so that this project can be triggered, says Jan Christian Vestre. Sets high demands on the environment The challenge is to meet the climate challenge. – Let it be completely clear: We will achieve the climate goals in the Paris Agreement and we will take into account nature and biological diversity. This means that the battery must be produced in an even more sustainable way and with low or no greenhouse gas emissions, says Vestre. The government warns that Norway will provide circular solutions, reuse and development of environmentally friendly battery technologies that can be produced with lower energy consumption. Norwegian authorities have previously been criticized for investing too little in battery production, compared with other countries. The battery factory at Mo i Rana is an important investment for Nordland to put in place what they call a green industry. Many jobs According to a report prepared by NHO, the battery factories in Norway can provide up to 30,000 new jobs and a turnover of around NOK 180 billion by 2050. The establishment at Freyr in Mo i Rana can provide around 2,150 new jobs in the municipality, according to a report made by Menon Economics on behalf of Rana municipality and Nordland county municipality. news first wrote that the government contributed NOK 17 billion to the giant factory. It’s wrong. The right thing is that the government contributes NOK 4 billion in the form of loans and guarantees.
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