Northvolt Partners With Stora Enso to Develop Wood-Based Batteries

Sweden’s Northvolt and Stora Enso, a leading provider of renewable products in packaging, biomaterials, wooden construction and paper, are joining forces to create batteries using lignin-based hard carbon produced with renewable wood from Nordic forests. The aim is to develop the world’s first industrialised battery featuring anode sourced entirely from European raw materials, lowering both the carbon footprint and the cost.

The companies have entered into an agreement to create batteries featuring anode produced from renewable raw materials sourced sustainably and locally in Nordic countries.

Both companies bring key components, competence, and expertise to the battery partnership.

Stora Enso will provide its lignin-based anode material Lignode, originating from sustainably managed forests, while Northvolt will drive cell design, production process development and scale-up of the technology.

Stora Enso’s pilot plant for bio-based carbon materials is located at the Group’s Sunila production site in Finland, where lignin has been industrially produced since 2015. 

Northvolt is a European supplier of sustainable, high-quality battery cells and systems. 

Emma Nehrenheim, Chief Environmental Officer at Northvolt, says: “With this partnership, we are exploring a new source of sustainable raw material and expanding the European battery value chain, while also developing a less expensive battery chemistry. It is an exciting demonstration of how our pursuit of a sustainable battery industry goes hand-in-hand with creating a positive impact both on society and cost.” 

Johanna Hagelberg, Executive Vice President for Biomaterials at Stora Enso, adds: “The joint battery development with Northvolt marks a step on our journey to serve the fast-growing battery market with renewable anode materials made from trees. Our lignin-based hard carbon, Lignode® by Stora Enso, will secure the strategic European supply of anode raw material, serving the sustainable battery needs for applications from mobility to stationary energy storage.”

Northvolt has to date secured more than $55 billion worth of contracts from key customers, including BMW, Fluence, Scania, Volkswagen, Volvo Cars and Polestar, to support its plans, which include establishing recycling capabilities to enable 50 percent of all its raw material requirements to be sourced from recycled batteries by 2030.