Vianode takes ownership of building to house first industrial scale battery materials plant

Vianode, a Norwegian producer of advanced battery materials with a greener footprint, has assumed formal ownership of the building which will house the company’s first industrial-scale plant at Herøya, Norway. The takeover is an important step towards Vianode’s ambition of establishing industrial leadership in supply of battery materials as part of a strong independent European battery value chain.

The plant at Herøya Industrial Park, Norway, will produce anode graphite for around 20,000 electric vehicles (EVs) per year, and is the first phase of a larger expansion plan. The construction of the initial facility will be carried out in parallel with preparations for a second-phase larger plant which is the next step to deliver on Vianode’s ambition to provide battery materials to approximately 2 million EVs per year by 2030, to meet the demand from a significant share of the global EV market.

Vianode will establish the plant in an existing building at Herøya to ensure a rapid ramp-up of production and deliveries to customers. Over the recent months, the building has undergone extensive refurbishment in preparation for production of Vianode’s advanced battery materials, which provides unique performance characteristics that improve battery properties. This includes faster charging, increased range, longer service life, as well as increased safety and recyclability.

“Having the keys to the building which will house our first industrial scale production signals that we are on track towards market leadership within advanced battery materials. Several Vianode employees will be onboarded during the first half of 2023. The employees will receive training at our industrial pilot in Kristiansand, which has been in operation for two years, to prepare to receive the production equipment when it arrives at Herøya later this year. Our employees will also participate in installation and start-up at Herøya as a part of the training,” says Steinar Talle, plant manager at Vianode.

The production equipment is expected to be installed starting from May 2023 and the plant, which uses renewable energy, is scheduled to start delivering sustainably produced anode materials to customers in 2024.

Vianode is investing approximately NOK 2 billion in the new facility which will create up to 100 sustainable industrial jobs in Norway and provide critical materials to a fast-growing Nordic and European battery value chain. Vianode’s active anode materials are produced with up to 90 percent lower CO₂ emissions than today’s standard materials.