MONTREAL — The Quebec government says it has recovered nearly $200 million on its loan to the North American branch of battery maker Northvolt.

The money comes from bank accounts belonging to Northvolt that were frozen after its Swedish parent company declared bankruptcy in March.

Quebec announced this week it would provide no more funding for the project and is now trying to recover a $240-million guaranteed loan that allowed Northvolt to purchase land for a battery plant near Montreal.

The government is asking Quebec Superior Court to declare the company insolvent and authorize a process for the sale or repossession of the land.

Quebec has already lost a $270-million investment in the parent company, and says the debt on the loan…

Northvolt announced plans in 2023 to build a $7-billion battery “gigafactory” in Quebec, touted as the largest private investment in the province’s history. But the project’s future was thrown into doubt when Northvolt’s Swedish parent company declared bankruptcy in March. Construction on the plant never moved past preparatory stages.

Quebec signed an agreement with the North American subsidiary in April to give it time to find new buyers or investors. But the government says Northvolt received no binding offers by a Sept. 1 deadline, and decided to pull the plug on the project.

“Through all the discussions there have been with potential players, there is no hope that the project can be…

Please note that by blocking any or all cookies you may not have access to certain features, content or personalization. For more information see our Cookie Policy.

To enable cookies, follow the instructions for your browser below.

Facebook App: Open links in External Browser

There is a specific issue with the Facebook in-app browser intermittently making requests to websites without cookies that had previously been set. This appears to be a defect in the browser which should be addressed soon. The simplest approach to avoid this problem is to continue to use the Facebook app but not use the in-app browser. This can be done through the following steps:

1. Open the settings menu by clicking the hamburger menu in the top right

2….

Eight of the nine Smiths City stores across the country are set to open for a “significant” liquidation sale, liquidators say.

Earlier this week, the furniture and home appliance retailer went into voluntary administration.

Administrators called for “urgent” expressions of interest for potential buyers of the business.

Liquidators from BDO New Zealand announced liquidation sales began today in Auckland and Christchurch.

Tomorrow, a further five stores will open from 9am in Greymouth, Oamaru, Alexandra, Gore and Invercargill.

The Dunedin store would remain shuttered.

In a statement, BDO said licensed insolvency practitioner Colin Gower and chartered accountant and licensed insolvency practitioner Diana Matchett have undertaken “urgent…

Please note that by blocking any or all cookies you may not have access to certain features, content or personalization. For more information see our Cookie Policy.

To enable cookies, follow the instructions for your browser below.

Facebook App: Open links in External Browser

There is a specific issue with the Facebook in-app browser intermittently making requests to websites without cookies that had previously been set. This appears to be a defect in the browser which should be addressed soon. The simplest approach to avoid this problem is to continue to use the Facebook app but not use the in-app browser. This can be done through the following steps:

1. Open the settings menu by clicking the hamburger menu in the top right

2….

Bank of Baroda has declared the loan accounts of Reliance Communications Ltd. (RCom) and its former director Anil Ambani as “fraud.” | Image:
Reuters

RCom’s Clarification