reported from the source

Quick summary: Battery manufacturer Lyten aims to establish approximately 1000 jobs at the site of the planned battery factory in Schleswig-Holstein following a partial acquisition of Northvolt.

Lyten expects to create around 1000 jobs in the first phase of the site in Heide after the planned acquisition of the German subsidiary of Northvolt. However, it was noted that not only batteries for electric vehicles will be produced there. The production is intended for a wide range of applications, including defense, stationary energy storage, mobility, and electric vehicles. The Northvolt site in Heide will not only be used for battery production, with a focus also on artificial intelligence and data centers. Construction in Heide is set to begin after the acquisition and planning are completed in 2027, according to Dan Cook, CEO of the US company Lyten. The goal is to start production in 2028. The company currently expects to manage the necessary investments in Schleswig-Holstein with private capital. Should public funding be offered to Lyten at a later date, the company will consider it. Currently, the company is working to finalize the transaction, with discussions planned in Berlin following a meeting in Kiel. Schleswig-Holstein’s Prime Minister Daniel Günther (CDU) described the conversation as positive and expressed optimism. The state government will support Lyten in the next steps, particularly regarding energy supply, as the planned battery production and data centers will have significant energy needs. The abundant green electricity available in the region is seen as a location advantage. At the end of February, Lyten completed the acquisition of the insolvent Swedish part of Northvolt, which includes the main factory in Skellefteå and the development center in Västerås. According to the US company, the Swedish sites are valued at nearly 5 billion dollars (approximately 4.2 billion euros). Discussions with the federal government, KfW, and Schleswig-Holstein regarding the German Northvolt subsidiary are ongoing. Northvolt had planned to establish a battery factory in Heide with around 3000 jobs and had received a convertible bond of approximately 600 million euros from the state development bank KfW for this purpose, with the federal and state governments each providing half of the guarantee. Some of the funds have been used or spent, but nearly 200 million euros are still available, protected in a blocked account. Lyten relies on lithium-sulfur cell chemistry for its batteries, which avoids critical raw materials like cobalt and nickel. According to researcher Steffen Link from the Fraunhofer Institute for System and Innovation Research (ISI), this technology is a promising alternative to conventional lithium-ion batteries, with market opportunities particularly in specialized and niche markets where every gram of weight matters, such as in aerospace. Examples include small aircraft, drones, satellites, and electrically powered aircraft capable of vertical takeoff, known as eVTOL.

Source: www.heise.de