PVTIME – Morrow Batteries ASA and its subsidiaries Morrow Technologies AS and Morrow Industrialization Center AS have filed for bankruptcy, after its board failed to secure a new industrial investor and additional financing within liquidity constraints. Advanced funding efforts could not be finalised in time to sustain operations.
Founded in 2020 and based in Arendal, Norway, the firm manufactured lithium-ion battery cells for the European market, specialising in LFP and high-voltage LNMO-X technologies for energy storage and electric vehicles. It recently secured a long-term supply deal with Finland’s Proventia Oy and its first defence contract with a German firm, but its financial position continued to decline.
The bankruptcy results from multiple challenges: the group’s early, capital-intensive industrialisation phase, global battery market oversupply, price competition, rising capital costs, delayed industrialisation and a cautious investment landscape. Board and management efforts to secure equity, debt financing or structural solutions with stakeholders were unsuccessful.
Morrow received significant support since establishment, including approximately NOK 3.3 billion in shareholder equity from investors including Å Energi, Siemens Financial Services, ABB, Maj Invest, Nysnø and Noah, plus over NOK 500 million in shareholder loan guarantees. Public backing included NOK 550 million in Innovation Norway loans, NOK 202 million in grants and NOK 542 million in Siva factory funding.
The Agder District Court will appoint a bankruptcy administrator to control assets and operations, with management assisting in value preservation. Its 210 employees will be protected under Norway’s NAV wage guarantee scheme.
Acting CEO Jon Fold Von Bülow noted the team’s dedication and the long-term value of the company’s technology and assets, while Board Chair Ann Christin Andersen highlighted market challenges and unmet financing needs. The collapse reflects wider struggles in Europe’s battery sector, with startups facing high costs, global oversupply and fierce Asian competition.
Morrow’s bankruptcy is not isolated. In March 2025, Swedish EV battery maker Northvolt entered US bankruptcy restructuring before its assets 16GW operational battery capacity, 6GW advanced BESS capacity and 15GW under-construction capacity were acquired by US firm Lyten. Europe’s solar sector faces similar distress, with multiple firms collapsing due to insufficient state support and intense competition from Chinese suppliers with economies of scale.
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