Swedish manufacturer Northvolt says it was once again targeted by vandals at the site of its future electric vehicle battery megaplant outside Montreal.
The company’s North American CEO, Paulo Cerruti, called for a press conference Monday afternoon to denounce what he says are “recent acts of vandalism that seriously endanger Northvolt employees and partners.”
In a press release, Cerruti said in French that homemade bombs placed under some machinery over the weekend were discovered by a Northvolt team Monday morning.
Cerruti claims the devices were placed there with “the intent of injuring our workings and to presumably slow down our operations.”
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The triggering mechanism on the devices, however, did not work.
“We strongly condemn this cowardly attempt to frighten our teams,” Cerruti said.
The construction of the plant has drawn a lot of criticism and opposition from local residents and environmental groups who say it is being built on environmentally sensitive land without being subject to a proper environmental assessment process, including full public consultations under the BAPE — the province’s Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement.
Cerruti said Northvolt is working with police and reiterated it will spare no effort to ensure the safety of its workers.
— With files from The Canadian Press
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