Elinor Batteries and Stella Futura enter strategic partnership to accelerate large battery installations in the Nordics

Trondheim and Stockholm, January 7th, 2025

Elinor Batteries AS and Stella Futura AB today announced a strategic partnership to strengthen their position in the rapidly growing market for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS). Batteries are becoming a crucial part of the Nordic power system addressing the challenges of electrification, renewable integration, and grid stability.

The partnership aims to secure 100 MWh of BESS installations in 2025 and achieve a total installed capacity of 5 GWh by 2030. Together, Stella Futura and Elinor Batteries, will also work to promote local production and development while complying with EU battery regulations emphasizing sustainability, safety, and traceability throughout the lifecycle.

In Sweden, batteries are already reducing grid costs by managing peak loads and delaying expensive grid upgrades. They also play a key role in grid balancing markets*, , supporting the integration of renewables and ensuring a stable and efficient power system.

The European BESS market is expected to grow to tens of billions of euros by 2030, driven by the rapid transition to renewable energy and the need to stabilize the power grid. The demand for safe, efficient, and sustainable energy storage solutions is increasing, while Europe faces challenges related to supply security. With the EU's strengthened battery regulations and goals to develop a robust production value chain, partnerships that emphasize proximity to supply chains and regional production are becoming increasingly vital to ensure efficiency and compliance in the coming years.

An Innovative Collaboration for a Safer and More Sustainable Energy Future

Stella Futura, under the leadership of CEO Ulrika Tornerefelt, is already an established player in the Swedish BESS market. Their contribution to the partnership is expertise in market intelligence, system design, EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) and financing solutions for BESS to facilitate a rapid implementation. Their experience from previous projects and understanding of safety challenges related to energy storage will ensure that all installations meet the highest standards of reliability and safety.

Elinor Batteries, under CEO Arne Fredrik Lånke, aims to start producing LFP battery cells for stationary energy storage in 2028, utilizing low-cost renewable energy, giga-scale technology and the possibility of an all-Nordic rawmaterial supplychain. Until its production facility in central Norway becomes operational, Elinor will collaborate with its Chinese partner, Morlus Technology, to secure product deliveries manufactured by the partner. This partnership ensures a stable supply chain and adherence to the highest quality standards.

A Shared Vision for Future Energy Solutions

“This partnership marks an important step in our strategy and to secure our presence as a player in the European energy storage market,” says Sofi Hildonen, EVP of Business Development of Elinor Batteries. “By combining our upcoming production capacity with Stella’s system design expertise, we are well-positioned to meet the end-customers growing demand for sustainable energy solutions. This is a rapidly growing market both here in Norway and in Sweden, why we see this common market approach as vital.

“We are very happy to announce this partnership with Elinor Batteries,” says Ulrika Tornerefelt, CEO of Stella Futura. “Our joint efforts will not only accelerate the transition to renewable energy in the Nordics, but also contribute to building a strong professional community of advisors and engineers critical for future battery installations.”

For more information, please contact:

Sofi Hildonen

EVP Business Development, Elinor Batteries AS

Email: sofi@elinorbatteries.com

Ulrika Tornerefelt

CEO, Stella Futura AB

Email: ulrika.tornerefelt@stellafutura.com

About Elinor Batteries

Elinor Batteries is a Norwegian supplier of LFP-based battery cells and BESS systems founded by Valinor. Elinor Batteries was established in 2022 and has built a team of around 20 experienced professionals within batteries and other large-scale infrastructure for sustainable energy and industry. We have established a unique ecosystem based on partnerships with top-tier technology players such as Sintef, NTNU, RISE and SEEL providing Elinor access to the most advanced and comprehensive R&D infrastructure in Europe.

Elinor Batteries' main technology partner is Morlus Technology. Morlus is a young company founded by Shen Xi and his team of highly proffesional battery experts.The team stands out as world-leading in LFP-based batteries with extensive experience from the industry. Elinor and Morlus are aiming to take a market-leading position within BESS in Europe and will gradually move its value chain to Norway.Theproduction will be sited at one of Nordic largest and most promising giga sites, Eiktyr Industrial Park. This provides Elinor with the possibility for a unique value proposition to stay competitive in their markets over time and with a leading sustainability perspective.

Valinor, is a leading Norwegian investment company rooted in a history of developing large-scale renewable energy projects. Being highly experienced in working with international giants as partners and counterparts, the company has developed and financed business opportunities across the entire energy value chain.

About Stella Futura

Stella Futura is a leading Nordic BESS developer based in Sweden. Stella Futura provides renewable energy storage solutions, primarily for the C&I segment and Co-located with renewable energy production sites. Stella futura has a strong track record delivering storage solutions with different services, such as peak shaving, island mode, ancillary services to their client base. Stella Futura has extensive experience providing financial solutions to their clients, such as battery leasing or full Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS). The innovative full system solutions provide optimal operational savings and CO2 reduction by making use of market leading energy storage technologies combined with energy management products. This secures long-term sustainable solutions for all clients.

About Grid balancing markets

Frequency Containment Reserve (FCR) and Fast Frequency Response (FFR) are critical markets for maintaining grid stability in the Nordic power system.FCR helps stabilize the grid frequency at 50 Hz by automatically adjusting power generation or consumption. It includes FCR-N for managing small, continuous deviations and FCR-D for responding to sudden, large disturbances. Batteries have become key players in these markets due to their precision and speed.FFR is designed to address rapid frequency drops caused by low system inertia, responding within 0.7–1.3 seconds. As the Nordic grid integrates more wind and solar power, which reduce overall system inertia, the demand for FFR is increasing. Batteries dominate this market as well, offering unmatched responsiveness and scalability.

Both FCR and FFR are essential for supporting the growing renewable energy share in the Nordics, while also providing lucrative opportunities for battery storage solutions.