Altris secures €4.8 million (SEK 50M) of bridge financing and gears up management with new CEO and CFO
Altris, the Swedish sodium-ion battery developer, has secured SEK 50M of bridge financing from its current owners and appointed Björn Mårlid as its new CEO and Christer Bergquist as new CFO, as the company moves ahead with its commercialisation journey.
Since its foundation in 2017, Altris has been on a rapid journey to develop components, such as Prussian White cathodes, electrolytes, battery cells, and production blueprints, for market-leading sodium-ion batteries.
Following its €9.6 million (SEK 100M) Series A Funding in 2022, Altris has secured a €4.8 million (SEK 50M) bridge financing facility from current investors and employees. The bridge facility was oversubscribed by 60 percent and will enable Altris to complete its industrial-grade battery manufacturing at a new facility in Uppsala, Sweden. In connection with this, Altris has also announced its plans to raise series B funding during 2023.
“We are proud of the confidence shown in us by our employees and investors, with this oversubscribed bridge round. This enables us to gear up while continuing our journey towards becoming the primary developer of sodium-ion batteries in Europe,” says Torbjörn Sternsjö, Chairman of Altris.
As part of its commercialisation journey, Altris has appointed Björn Mårlid as CEO and Christer Bergquist as new CFO. Björn joins Altris after 20+ years at French battery developer SAFT, where he has held several senior positions.
“I am very happy to be joining Altris. Few battery innovations survive the commercialisation process to become viable products – but Altris does. I look forward to playing a part in our continued development, moving towards large-scale deployment,” says Björn Mårlid, appointed CEO of Altris.
Christer joins Altris from Norrsken where he has held roles such as COO and CFO of Norrsken Foundation and, most recently, General Partner of Norrsken Impact Accelerator.
“I am impressed by Altris’ journey so far, and the high ambitions t achieve real impact and contribute to a more sustainable and electrified world. The bridge financing enables us to maintain a high pace in our development, while preparing to raise our Series B financing”, says Christer Bergquist, appointed CFO of Altris.
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