The possible changes in the schedule of the Northvolt project in Montérégie do not worry the federal Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, François-Philippe Champagne, who was in Montreal on Thursday.
On a scale of 1 to 10, François-Philippe Champagne’s level of confidence is “at 10 that the factory will be built.”
This is what the minister responded on Thursday on the sidelines of an announcement concerning the marketing of semiconductors.
“But if you ask me about the timeline, could it be a matter of a few months? Maybe.” But “that’s normal in disruptive technologies,” the minister said.
“I don’t know the exact time frame that there could be, I speak conditionally, because there has not yet been a decision made based on the information that I have,” he added.
Northvolt continues construction “as planned”
On Tuesday, Northvolt’s director of communications in North America, Laurent Therrien, indicated that the company was continuing construction of its plant on the South Shore “as planned” at this time.
In a written statement, he provided an update following comments by the company’s president and CEO, Peter Carlsson, who announced that Northvolt would slow down its international development plan to focus on its factory in Sweden.
The company has fallen behind schedule in the construction of its mega-factory in the Scandinavian country.
Mr. Therrien assured that Northvolt still wants to “play a central role in the energy transition by manufacturing the greenest batteries in the world here.”
The mega-factory project on the South Shore of Montreal, between Saint-Basile-le-Grand and McMasterville, is expected to cost $7 billion.