Hydro says Northvolt no longer financing Hydrovolt JV
Hydro39;s stake in Hydrovolt now at 62, up from 50
Hydrovolt recycles batteries

STOCKHOLM, Oct 31 Reuters Norway39;s Hydro said on Thursday it is now solely financing the Hydrovolt battery recycler which it set up with joint venture partner Sweden39;s Northvolt.

The Norwegian group recently raised its stake in Hydrovolt to 62 from the original 50 when the partnership was established in 2020, a Hydro spokesperson said.

Currently Hydro is the only one financing the operations of Hydrovolt, the spokesperson for the Norwegian metals maker told Reuters.

A spokesperson for the joint venture Hydrovolt said operations and activity was continuing as planned, in line with the board39;s strategy.

Northvolt, once hailed as Europe39;s best shot at a homegrown electricvehicle battery champion, is racing to stay afloat by slimming down and cutting jobs, hobbled by production problems, loss of a major customer contract and a lack of funding.

We remain an active owner, board member and partner in Hydrovolt, and will continue to work with Hydrovolt and Hydro to grow and enhance the business, as we have done since 2020, Northvolt said in an emailed statement.

On Wednesday, Volvo Cars said it was seeking to take over Northvolt39;s stake in their Swedish batterymaking joint venture NOVO, as Northvolt had stopped contributing funds.

The formation of Hydrovolt was key to Northvolt39;s goal of sourcing 50 of raw materials from…