Innovation Norway has announced granting Morrow Batteries ASA (“Morrow”) a loan facility of NOK 1.5 billion. The loan facility will be available for Morrow to fund the scale-up and development of battery manufacturing in Norway.
The loan facility contributes to the realisation of the government’s battery strategy and provides Morrow access to liquidity for its business plan.
Morrow’s main priority is starting up the first 1 GWh LFP battery factory in Q2 2025, working to secure more offtake, and developing the company’s proprietary battery chemistry.
“In the current capital market, with many green initiatives facing strong headwinds, I see this loan facility as validation of Morrow’s business plan and step-by-step industrial approach. It enables us to start giga-scale production of batteries in Arendal, playing a crucial role in the development of a Norwegian battery value chain,” says Morrow Batteries CEO Lars Christian Bacher.
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Morrow Batteries ASA
- Founded in 2020.
- Norwegian battery manufacturer specialising in sustainable lithium-ion batteries
- 240 employees from 40 nationalities
- Headquarters in Arendal, Norway
- CEO: Lars Christian Bacher
- Chairwoman: Liv Monica Stubholt
Facilities
- Morrow Cell Factory (MCF): Europe’s first LFP battery gigafactory in Arendal
- Morrow Research Centre (MRC) in Grimstad with 60+ researchers and presence at the Insitute for Energy Technology.
- Sales offices in Norway and Germany
Key products
- LFP Batteries: Safe, long-lasting, low-carbon batteries for energy storage and heavy machinery
- LNMO Batteries: Next-generation technology with reduced cobalt and nickel use. LNMO has longer longevity and wide range of applications
Investors
- Major investors: Å Energi, Siemens, ABB, PKA, NOAH, Nysnø Climate Investments
Partnerships
- Collaborates with over 30 research institutions to drive battery chemistry innovation
- Offtake agreement with Nordic Batteries
- Memorandum of Understanding with Proventia for heavy machinery battery delivery
- Memorandum of Understanding with the Ukrainian Energy Efficiency and Energy Saving Office
Financing
Private Equity Raised: NOK 3.3 billion
Grants:
Paid as of 1 December, 2024: NOK 98.8 million
Allocated: Total NOK 508.8 million. Largest allocations:
- NOK 345 million from IPCEI (Important Projects of Common European Interest). Full IPCEI payment covers approximately 35% of costs, requiring NOK 1.0 billion in additional financing.
- NOK 50 million for MIC (Factory-related R&D for establishing battery production processes)
- NOK 25 million for NMC development
- NOK 25 million for LNMO development
State Investments:
- SIVA owns the factory building in Arendal, which has construction costs of approximately NOK 542 million. Morrow leases it on commercial terms
- Nysnø Climate Investment has invested NOK 85 million
(Allocations are paid out through the life-span of the projects and since not all projects given financing are finished and/or started, the payments are lower than the allocated amounts.)
Loans:
NOK 150 million, of which NOK 120 million has been paid out (Green Growth Loan from Innovation Norway).
Source: Innovation Norway grants NOK 1.5 billion loan facility to Morrow Batteries ASA | Morrow Batteries
