
Hydro and Northvolt's planned pilot plant will receive NOK 43.5 million in support from Enova, a Norwegian government enterprise supporting clean energy and climate efforts. The plant, which will be built in early 2021, will recycle used electric car batteries.

Hydro and the Swedish battery company Northvolt will establish the company Hydro Volt in Fredrikstad. The facility will be the first of its kind in Norway and one of the most technologically advanced recycling plants in the world.
“We are pleased that Enova sees the importance of what Hydro and Northvolt want to achieve and wants to contribute to realizing Hydro Volt. This is a milestone on the road to utilizing the opportunities in sustainable battery recycling,” said Hydro President & CEO Hilde Merete Aasheim. She emphasizedthat Hydro Volt is part of Hydro's stated strategy of strengthening its position in low-carbon aluminium and growing in new areas, including recycling, renewable energy and batteries.
“If they succeed with this, it can be more profitable and thus more attractive to recycle batteries. So this is a good project for Enova and the low-emission society,” said Enova CEO Nils Kristian Nakstad.
“The products from the planned recycling plant for batteries in Fredrikstad will consist of aluminum and other valuable battery raw materials. The aluminum will be recycled by Hydro, while other valuable materials will either be reused in Northvolt's battery production or sold to other parties,” Hydro said.
“The state-of-the-art recycling plant in Fredrikstad will play an important role in driving Europe towards a circular economy in several industries. At Northvolt, we have set a goal that 50% of the raw materials we use will come from recycled batteries by 2030, and the establishment of this facility in Fredrikstad is an important milestone,” said Emma Nehrenheim, head of sustainability at Northvolt.
The pilot plant, which is expected to cost about NOK 120 million, will have the capacity to process more than 8,000 tonnes of batteries each year, with the possibility of later capacity expansion.
The plant will be operated by Batteriretur, and the CEO of Batteriretur, Fredrik Andresen, will also be CEO of Hydro Volt.
Responses







