Columbia University Professor and seasoned
operations executive bring decades of industry, technical and
advisory experience in battery sector
FREYR Battery (NYSE: FREY) (“FREYR” or “the Company”), a
developer of clean, next-generation battery cell production
capacity, has appointed Jason Forcier and Dr. Dan Steingart as
independent members of the Company’s Board of Directors effective
December 21, 2022, and January 9, 2023, respectively. The
appointments are intended to fill vacancies created by the
departures of Jeremy Bezdek and Jon Christian Thaulow from FREYR’s
Board of Directors.
On January 9, 2023, FREYR’s Board appointed Dr. Dan Steingart as
an independent director of the Company, effective January 9, 2023.
Dr. Steingart is the Stanley-Thompson Professor of Chemical
Metallurgy at Columbia University where he is also the co-director
of the Columbia Electrochemical Energy Center. Over the last
decade, his research in energy storage has been adopted by various
industries and has led directly or indirectly to five
electrochemical energy-related startup companies. Additionally, Dr.
Steingart has served as Chief Scientist/Advisor to ElectraSteel
since 2020, Co-Founder of Liminal Insights Inc. since 2015 and
Industry Advisor to Sila Nanotechnologies Inc. since 2016.
“I want to extend a warm welcome to Dan as he joins our Board of
Directors,” commented Torstein Dale Sjøtveit, FREYR’s Founder and
Executive Chairperson. “Dan brings impressive technical and
industry credentials to the FREYR Board as a distinguished
electrochemistry expert, a highly respected professor and research
scientist at one of the world’s foremost academic institutions, and
a valued advisor to start-up companies in the energy sector. Our
entire team is looking forward to his stewardship through the next
phase of FREYR’s growth as a global industrial partner of choice in
the clean battery space.”
“I am excited to be joining the FREYR Board of Directors during
a crucial time in the battery industry,” remarked Dr. Dan
Steingart. “Having observed the company’s remarkable progress to
date, I believe that FREYR is uniquely positioned to scale a
cost-effective battery technology as demand for clean energy
storage and mobility accelerates. I have long admired the operating
team and am proud to be aiding them on their journey.”
As previously announced, Jason Forcier joined FREYR’s Board of
Directors on December 21, 2022. Mr. Forcier currently serves as
Chief Executive Officer of SVP Worldwide. Mr. Forcier’s previous
experience includes positions as Chief Operations Officer and other
senior manufacturing, supply chain and quality roles at Vertiv
Holdings Co from 2017 to 2022; and eight years at A123 Systems, a
global manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries, where he was the
Chief Executive Officer from 2013 until 2017 and member of the
board of management.
“Jason’s experience leading and establishing manufacturing
operations in the lithium-ion battery and other industries will be
invaluable to FREYR as we commence production in Norway and the
U.S.,” remarked Sjøtveit. “We are delighted to welcome Jason and
his unique skill set to our Board of Directors, and we look forward
to his contributions as we establish giga scale production of
clean, next-generation batteries.”
Mr. Forcier’s appointment to the Board of Directors coincided
with Jon Christian Thaulow notifying FREYR’s Board of Directors of
his intention to tender his resignation as a director of the
Company effective December 21, 2022.
As announced by the Company on December 23, 2022, Jeremy Bezdek
joined FREYR as the Company’s Executive Vice President of Global
Corporate Development and President of FREYR Battery U.S. Mr.
Bezdek joined FREYR from his prior position of Managing Director,
Strategic Platforms at Koch Industries. Prior to joining FREYR, Mr.
Bezdek spent over 26 years with Koch Industries companies in a
variety of executive and leadership roles. On January 8, 2023, he
notified FREYR’s Board of Directors that he will be tendering his
resignation as a director of the Company and as a member and
chairperson of its Compensation Committee as he assumes his new
responsibilities at FREYR.
In addition, to fill the vacancy on the Compensation Committee
created by Mr. Bezdek’s resignation, the Board appointed Jason
Forcier, an existing independent director of the Company, as a
member of the committee effective January 9, 2023. The Board also
appointed Mimi Berdal, a current director on the Board and a member
of the Compensation Committee, as chairperson of the committee,
effective January 9, 2023.
“On behalf of the FREYR Board of Directors - Peter Matrai, Olaug
Svarva, Mimi Berdal, Daniel Barcelo, and Monica Tiúba, we thank Jon
Christian and Jeremy for their enormous contributions to the
Company during a pivotal stage in FREYR’s journey,” added Sjøtveit.
“Their counsel and dedication have been instrumental to FREYR’s
commercial and industrial development, and we are grateful for the
privilege it has been to serve with them.”
About FREYR Battery
FREYR Battery aims to provide industrial scale clean battery
solutions to reduce global emissions. Listed on the New York Stock
Exchange, FREYR’s mission is to produce green battery cells to
accelerate the decarbonization of energy and transportation systems
globally. FREYR has commenced building the first of its planned
factories in Mo i Rana, Norway and announced potential development
of industrial scale battery cell production in Vaasa, Finland, and
the United States. FREYR intends to install 50 GWh of battery cell
capacity by 2025 and 100 GWh annual capacity by 2028 and 200 GWh of
annual capacity by 2030. To learn more about FREYR, please visit
www.freyrbattery.com
Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking
Statements
All statements, other than statements of present or historical
fact included in this press release, including, without limitation,
statements regarding FREYR’s growth as a global industrial partner
of choice in the clean battery space, FREYR’s position to
industrialize a next-generation technology as demand for clean
energy storage and mobility accelerates, and the establishment of
giga scale production of clean, next-generation batteries are
forward-looking and involve significant risks and uncertainties
that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the
expected results.
Most of these factors are outside FREYR’s control and difficult
to predict. Information about factors that could materially affect
FREYR is set forth under the “Risk Factors” section in (i) FREYR’s
Registration Statement on Form S-3 filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on September 1, 2022, as amended,
and (ii) FREYR’s annual report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on
March 9, 2022, and available on the SEC’s website at
www.sec.gov.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230110005315/en/
Investor contact:
Jeffrey Spittel Vice President, Investor Relations
jeffrey.spittel@freyrbattery.com Tel: (+1) 281-222-0161
Media contact:
Katrin Berntsen Vice President, Communication and Public Affairs
katrin.berntsen@freyrbattery.com Tel: (+47) 920 54 570
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