Finnish Minerals Group and FREYR Battery collaborate to establish an LFP cathode material plant in Vaasa

According to the CEO of Finnish Minerals Group, Matti Hietanen, Finnish Minerals Group and FREYR are currently preparing the business plan, front-end engineering, cost estimates, financing, and environmental impact assessment. The parties plan to establish a joint venture company upon successfully completing initial phase studies and receiving approval for investment decisions.

“Vaasa is becoming a battery industry cluster. I thank you for your great cooperation; this is not something anyone can do alone. The higher up in the value chain we rise, the more significant new industrial sector we create in Finland,” says Hietanen.

The new cooperation agreement strengthens FREYR’s investments in Finland’s battery industry projects.

“We have long stated that our sourcing strategy is local in nature and based on renewable energy sources, and we see Finnish Minerals Group as a like-minded partner that can help ensure that we are well-positioned to meet this ambition,” Axel Thorsdal, SVP of Project Development at FREYR says on FMG’s press release.

According to the Mayor of Vaasa, Tomas Häyry, GigaVaasa-project is going forward as planned. In Yle’s article, Häyry considers the realization of the project very likely.

“The investment project announced today is highly significant in moving the whole domestic battery value-chain forward. This investment will reinforce the GigaVaasa area, whose street and water infrastructure will be completed this year and whose environmental impact assessment procedures are progressing. Cooperation between parties in several simultaneous projects grants Finland a competitive advantage. I would like to express my gratitude to Finnish Minerals Group for promoting direct investments in Finland through partnerships, Häyry says.

GigaVaasa Area Timeline:

• February 2023: Finnish Minerals Group and FREYR Battery collaborate to establish an LFP cathode material plant in Vaasa
• January 2023: FREYR Battery’s environmental impact assessment of the cathode factory plot progressing
• November 2022: FREYR Battery made a planning reservation on a plot to build a cathode factory.
• October 2022: Finnish Minerals Group and Epsilon Advanced Materials sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) under which the companies will evaluate the possibility of setting up an anode materials production facility in Vaasa.
• September 2022: The memorandum of understanding with Grafintec Oy and Epsilon Advanced Materials was formally terminated as cooperation between the companies had ended and new negotiations on the plot in question could start.
• August 2022: Grafintec Oy and Epsilon Advanced Materials dissolve their mutual cooperation agreement. They continue discussions with the City of Vaasa
• May 2022: FREYR Battery and the City of Vaasa enter into a fixed-term lease agreement for a 130-hectare plot.
• January 2022: FREYR Battery’s environmental impact assessment (EIA) commences.
• January 2022: Grafintec Oy and Epsilon Advanced Materials sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the City of Vaasa to build a plant to produce anode materials for the battery industry in the GigaVaasa area.
• November 2021: Johnson Matthey announces the sale of its battery materials business. However, Vaasa continues negotiations with the company’s new owner.
• August 2021: FREYR Battery selects Vaasa as the location of a battery cell plant; a memorandum of understanding is signed for a 90-hectare plot.
• April 2021: First reservation for the GigaVaasa area; Johnson Matthey selects Vaasa as the location for a sustainable battery materials plant.