Northvolt and Stora Enso announce joint agreement to source battery materials from Nordic forests

European markets are steadily moving from gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles to electric and environmentally friendly ones. To do this, companies are working together to locate and pursue raw material solutions.

Volkswagen-backed Northvolt has announced plans to collaborate with Stora Enso to create batteries using parts made from wood taken from Nordic forests. A joint agreement between the companies will foster the creation of a battery that uses an anode composed of lignin-based hard carbon, which is an essential component of batteries.

Stora Enso will handle the lignode, the lignin-based anode substance, while Northvolt concentrates on the design of the battery cells, the creation of production methods, and scaling up the technology.

Electric vehicle battery maker Northvolt and Stora Enso released a statement about what lignin-based hard carbon is and how to find it. According to both companies, lignin is located in the cell walls of dry-land plants, like trees, that act like a binder. Stora Enso will supply the lignin, while Northvolt focuses on designing, manufacturing, and mass-producing the battery.

Stora Enso owns many private forests specifically grown and maintained for paper and wood-based products.

Johanna Hagelberg, Stora Enso’s Executive Vice President for biomaterials, stated that lignin-based hard carbon would “secure the strategic European supply of anode raw material” and serve “the sustainable battery needs for applications from mobility to stationary energy storage.”

If their plans work, they can help European countries like the United Kingdom meet electrification goals. The U.K plans to stop the sale of new gasoline vehicles by 2030.