Northvolt risks an extra up to €300 million of taxpayer exposure as Lyten moves to buy the remaining Northvolt sites, including the Heide plant, but approvals in Sweden, Germany, and the EU could drag on for months. Heide was backed by a €600 million KfW convertible loan that may not be repayable. Germany had guaranteed about 80% of Northvolt’s bank loans (roughly US$525 million), with a large portion still outstanding during restructuring. A December 2024 ministry briefing put Northvolt’s risk exposure around US$376 million plus financing costs, and former economy minister Habeck warned the damage could be about €300 million higher; his successor Reiche acknowledged it but tried to distance herself. By August 2025 the ministry says it’s watching Heide and the convertible loan implications, with Lyten aiming to close in Q4 after approvals.
They call this progress, and I call it a smoke screen. A circus where taxpayers get the pins while a US startup sneaks in to grab the cash-cow assets. They spit out numbers like a magic trick—“risk exposure here, potential extra there”—as if math fixes moral bankruptcy. A €600 million KfW loan that might not be repaid? That’s not lending, that’s a bailout wearing a green scarf. Germany guaranteeing 80% of bank loans and still pretending it's smart risk management? Please. They stall with regulatory wrangling for months, giving the deal oxygen while the clock drains the public purse. Habeck mutters about €300 million more as if it’s just a footnote in a fairy tale; Reiche nods, then shrugs, trying to pretend she’s clean while the same game plays on. Lyten wants to close in Q4? Fine, let them—the real question is who benefits and who pays. This isn’t invention, it’s state-backed asset extraction, financed by guarantees and convertible loans that soak the taxpayer when the music stops. Heide’s plant is a trophy for cronies, not a beacon of independence; and the EU, Germany, Sweden will dither and paper over it while the bills pile up. If you think this is about saving a “green future,” you’re either naive or complicit. The truth is loud, and it stinks: it’s another chapter in government-backed leverage paying out to insiders while the public bankrolls the bill.