Lytens CEO Dan Cook describes himself as a former factory boy and car engineer from Detroit.
I have spent years in factories and I recognize good leadership when I see it, he says.
And what he saw in Northvolt's current management impressed him. He describes it as a crucial part in making the deal happen.
As I see it, they have solved some of the most obvious problems that existed in the factory, he says.
A different strategy
Northvolt's bankruptcy is described as the largest in Sweden in modern times. The company failed to scale up operations at the pace required to deliver batteries to customers. The financiers pulled out one by one.
To succeed where former CEO Peter Carlsson failed, Dan Cook believes in a different strategy.
They tried to do a lot of different things at the same time, instead of focusing on a specific product and a specific customer.
We believe that if we can succeed in delivering a quality product to a customer, many of the former customers will come back, he says.
Today, Lyten primarily produces batteries for drones and the defense industry. But according to Dan Cook, talks have been held with the major car manufacturers in Europe since before.
He believes that the acquisition of Northvolt's factories will make the company even more interesting for the European car industry. The French-Italian car manufacturer Stellantis invested in Lyten as early as 2023.
Thousands of employees
When the purchase is completed, which is expected to be at the end of the year, Lyten will initially retain the staff currently working in Skellefteå. This involves around 170 people.
According to Dan Cook, the plan is to scale up operations to thousands of employees. But when this will happen in time, he cannot answer at present.
This is something that I and the management are looking at right now.
Aren't you afraid that it will be difficult to attract talents back to Skellefteå?
It's true that many are leaving Skellefteå now, but it's similar challenges that we have in Silicon Valley. We have constant challenges in attracting talents, but one or two individuals can make all the difference, he says.
