Fredrik Ringnes appointed Chief Operating Officer in Hagal

Hagal has grown from 3 to 30 employees within the last year, and is getting noticed for their innovative battery technology which gives a second life to used batteries. Fredrik Ringnes has been part of the company from the beginning and has held the helm as Chairman of the Board since January 2019. In October, he took on the role as Chief Operating Officer and interim Chief Financial Officer.

 

– I´ve had an exciting journey, from the oil adventure in the nineties, to environmental technology and clean-tech, and the last 10 years, renewable energy. Now it’s all about batteries – one of the most important enablers for the green transition. In Hagal, we are at the core of everything that is happening, and can drive positive change with new Norwegian battery technology, says Ringnes.

 

Preparing for further growth
Ringnes has a background from the energy industry, and comes to Hagal from Hydro. He has previously headed the hydropower company Rainpower, and worked internationally with aluminum and the power industry at Alstom.

 

– Hagal is in a scaling-up phase where we need competency across a broad spectrum. Fredrik´s competency and experience, in addition to the extensive knowledge he has acquired as our chairman, enables him to contribute 100 percent from day one. Fredrik will help lift us, operationally and financially, preparing us for further commercialization and growth, says CEO Christian F. P. Ringvold.

 

Batteries – much more than the green shift
As a result of global electrification, the market for lithium batteries is expected to grow rapidly towards 2030. The flexibility that batteries provide the power grid when it comes to energy storage, accelerates the adoption of lithium batteries.

 

– Lithium batteries are the only technology spun out of Asia, and most new patents have an Asian origin. Now the European battery industry is finally blooming, with Norway as an important contributor. The industrialization of batteries has the potential to create 30,000 new Norwegian jobs, and by 2030 we can expect 90 billion NOK in a Norwegian battery value chain, Ringnes explains.

 

– Hagal wants to make battery technology more competitive and applicable in energy systems for road and stationary storage. We are developing a scalable technology that controls and manages batteries – for the international market. We expect used EV batteries to become an important commodity in the recycling industry, and Hagal is ready with the technology that allows the batteries to be re-certificated and reused, Ringnes emphasizes.