Ebba Busch says that there "is hope and opportunity for a new owner" of the battery manufacturer Northvolt's bankruptcy estate. But she does not believe in state ownership as a solution to the crisis, and she does not want to see a new owner from China taking over.
In this difficult security policy situation, it's about our independence, says the Minister of Enterprise on a press conference in Skellefteå.
She simultaneously reminds that the regulations for foreign investments in Sweden give ISP the task of assessing the issue – not the government.
Bloody playing field
At the same time, Busch is calling for new forms of EU support for green transition and battery manufacturers in Europe. She describes the EU's policy in the area as naive.
It's a bloody playing field out there, says Busch about the competition on the global market for batteries.
Northvolt was declared bankrupt by the Stockholm District Court on Wednesday after several months of attempts to achieve debt restructuring and raise new capital under bankruptcy protection according to Chapter 11 in the US bankruptcy law.
I believe that the company would have been declared bankrupt much earlier if the government had not been so heavily involved as we have been, says Busch.
The bankruptcy is the largest in Sweden in modern times. The company's debt mountain was estimated at around 60 billion kronor in the autumn and Northvolt has around 5,000 employees in Skellefteå, Västerås, and Stockholm.
Many of them come from countries outside the EU. Ebba Busch met several during a visit to the factory.
It was very moving to hear so many bear witness to seeing this as so much more than a job and an income, says she.
But now they risk being forced to leave the country if they do not find a new job within three months. The municipality of Skellefteå has requested an exemption from the so-called 90-day rule.
We will return to the rules. They are as they are today, says Busch.
Much capital
Northvolt's bankruptcy also risks hitting hard on subcontractors, not least in the cluster around the battery factory in Skellefteå.
The bankruptcy administrator, lawyer Mikael Kubu, will now try to find buyers of assets and operations to get as much money as possible to Northvolt's creditors.
There is much capital that needs to come in, regardless of what the price tag will be to take over ownership. Much capital needs to come in to get this to move forward, says Busch.
