Date: 2022-06-01
Level: Bachelor thesis in Business Administration, 15 cr
Institution: School of Business, Society and Engineering, Mälardalen University
Authors: João Vitor Barroso França Karl Isaksson Alex Josefsson
(99/04/01) (97/10/31) (95/09/08)
Title: LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES FROM A CLEAN ENERGY PERSPECTIVE: The Case of Northvolt
Supervisor: Konstantin Lampou
Keywords: Northvolt, Lithium-Ion Battery, SDG, Sustainability, Clean energy
Research question: How does a company in the Lithium-Ion Battery Industry contribute to affordable and clean energy for all? The case of Northvolt
Purpose: The purpose of this study aims at understanding what values and implementations Northvolt has in its business to integrate targets from the UN’s SDG number seven. Because of the complexity of the research area, the authors adopted an extensive literature review on articles concerning corporate social responsibility (CSR), sustainable development (SD), and Lithium-Ion batteries.
Method: This research was conducted through interpretive, inductive, and exploratory logic, together with a qualitative case-study research approach, where six different managers from Northvolt were interviewed, and secondary data related to Northvolt, and the Lithium-Ion battery Industry was collected and analyzed.
Conclusion: The authors concluded that, with a vertically integrated business model, Northvolt is a disruptor in the LIB industry. Additionally, the company focuses more extensively on reaching targets beyond the UN’s SDGs. As a booming market globally, challenges around sustainability, carbon footprint transparency, and reaching global demand for the products are extensive. Northvolt’s business revolves around innovation and the company has a strict sustainable approach in a very energy-intensive industry. Northvolt’s vision is to create the greenest battery on the market, which can indicate that CSR values overlap with business operations. Northvolt contributes to global goals by taking all elements of the supply chain into account.