Work is under way in Fredrikstad, Norway, to build a plant that will be key to electric vehicle (EV) transportation in Europe.
The final touches are being made to Fredrikstad's Hydrovolt factory, a joint venture between aluminium producer Norsk Hydro and battery producer Northvolt that will recycle 8,000 tonnes of EV batteries per year when ramped up - making it one of Europe's top plants for the sector.
The plant comes at a key time in Norway, which last year became the first country to sell more electric cars than those powered by internal combustion engines, putting the Scandinavian nation at the forefront of a transportation megatrend that is poised to be emulated across the globe.
"Hydrovolt will be big in European terms, but several more facilities like [it] are required to meet the future demand for recycling capacity in Europe," Hydrovolt chief executive officer Fredrik Andresen told Fastmarkets in an interview.
While other countries - from China to the United States - sign up for...