27 March 2023

Today's Top Nordic Green News:

• FT: “Northvolt in discussions in securing additional USD 5 billion in financing”
• Leading political parties advocate scrapping Swedish emission targets for transport sector
• Investor group calls for meeting with Norwegian Prime Minister over Equinor's climate plan

FT: “Northvolt in discussions in securing additional USD 5 billion in financing”

Swedish battery producer Northvolt is in discussions with a number of banks to secure USD 5 billion, corresponding to more than SEK 53 billion, in new financing. The sources also allege that an agreement may be reached later this year, while Northvolt on the other hand declined to comment on the report. The funds are reportedly to be used to realise Northvolt’s ambition of becoming Europe's largest battery manufacturer, and if a deal were to become a reality, it would mark an important step for the company. In addition to the factory in Skellefteå, Northvolt is also planning to build a battery factory together with Volvo Cars in Gothenburg, and within the next few months, the company management will decide on a third production facility location, either in Germany or the US. In July last year, Northvolt raised USD 1.1 billion in convertible bonds, bringing the total amount of capital raised since its founding in 2017 to USD 8 billion.

Financial Times, Dagens Industri

Leading political parties advocate scrapping Swedish emission targets for transport sector

According to the Swedish Government, all set out climate targets are fixed. However, Christofer Fjellner (M), the “brain” behind the Moderate Party’s new climate policy, claimed he was open to the idea of scrapping the national transport emission goals for 2030. The current goal is to have reduced greenhouse gas emissions, with the exception of domestic air travel, by at least 70% by 2030 compared with rates measured in 2010. “The national transport target is something that we have defined ourselves,” said Fjellner, who argued throughout the interview that Swedish goals were not aligned with the EU’s “Fit for 55” plan, and thus might have to be revised. Previously, it was only the right-wing Sweden Democrats party that advocated that Sweden’s current climate goals are misaligned or otherwise not fit for purpose. 

Svenska Dagbladet

Investor group calls for meeting with Norwegian Prime Minister over Equinor's climate plan

Several investors, including Storebrand, KLP, Danske Bank and others, have written to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre to discuss Equinor's climate plan. The 18 investors claim that Equinor's restructuring plan does not go far enough to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to reach the 1.5-degree Celsius target. According to Equinor's 2022 annual report, 86% of its investments went towards fossil fuels, with only 14% invested in renewable energy and low-carbon solutions. Equinor is also still looking for new oil and gas projects, which investors believe is inconsistent with the company’s goals and want to know when it will stop. 

The investors have called for the company to invest more in low-emission energy solutions or phase out emissions-heavy projects, as well as demand greater transparency in long-term projects, which the Norwegian government, as a major shareholder in Equinor, should be able to demand.

Equinor spokesperson Magnus Frantzen Eidsvold acknowledges the impatience of investors regarding climate action but notes that cutting oil and gas production without alternatives is not sustainable, especially when energy security is low. Equinor has reduced emissions by 31% since 2015 and aims to align with the 1.5-degree target. The company's strategy in the energy transition is to be a reliable supplier of energy while gradually lowering emissions towards net zero by 2050. 

However, Equinor is dependent on government policies, customers and stakeholders to accelerate their response to climate change. Additionally, the company believes focusing solely on achieving absolute emission reduction targets in the short term by selling or shutting down profitable oil and gas production may not provide appropriate incentives for companies to invest in new forms of energy. This is because it would shift the indirect emissions from end-use to other manufacturers and not create a market for hydrogen and carbon capture and storage. 

E24

SSAB's Finnish steel mill in final stage of environmental permit application

Steel company SSAB's application for an environmental permit to change the Raahe steel mill in Finland is in the finalisation stage. The permit serves as a justification for renewing the factory's production system, which will be changed to ones based on electric arc furnaces and rolling mills integrated with them. The investment aims at fossil-free steel production, but the decision has not been made yet. SSAB's board has outlined that in 2030, the factories in Raahe and Lulea should be converted to new technology, and the investments in the project are considerable.

Msn

Finnish Myrsky Energia planning 100 MW hybrid energy park to balance production 

Finnish energy company, Myrsky Energia, is planning to construct a hybrid park consisting of wind turbines and a solar power plant in the Suurikanga area of Luumäki, with construction of the first wind turbines potentially beginning in summer 2025. The company states that the combination of wind and solar power production will help balance production at different times, and that the area is ideal for the addition of a solar power plant, with a potential output of 100 MW. The number and height of wind turbines will be determined through environmental impact assessment and zoning, and there will be a maximum of 15 wind turbines.

yle

TikTok data centre using up electricity needed by Norwegian ammunition factory

Norwegian Nammo, one of Europe’s largest ammunition manufacturers, is facing a challenge to its planned expansion of its largest factory because a new data centre for TikTok is using up all the spare electricity in the area. The Raufoss plant in central Norway has been told there is no surplus energy as the data centre is using up the electricity in the region. Nammo has warned that “the storage of cat videos is affecting its future growth”, while the European ammunition industry needs to invest EUR 2 billion in new factories just to keep up with the demand from Ukraine.

Financial Times

What we're reading

• Brussels agrees deal with Germany in spat over combustion engines ban (Financial Times)
• Goldman Sees Biden’s Clean-Energy Law Costing US $1.2 Trillion (Yahoo Finance)
• Wind sector faces supply chain crunch this decade, industry body warns (Financial Times)

The wind energy industry is facing a supply chain bottleneck due to the increasing demand for key components and ships. The Global Wind Energy Council has warned that spare capacity in wind energy manufacturing is likely to disappear by 2026, which will hit the US and Europe particularly hard as much of the supply chain is concentrated in China. Shortages for key components such as wind turbine nacelles are likely to emerge, and there is an urgent need to increase investment in the global wind sector supply chains. European wind turbine manufacturers have already suffered from rising input costs, supply chain constraints, and slow permitting processes, causing profits to decline and delays to occur. There is a risk that attempts to shift manufacturing away from China could amplify the shortages.

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