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Scania offered $6 million for the unit in February

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Northvolt bankruptcy meant deal was halted

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An unnamed consortium earlier made higher bid

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Bankruptcy trustee responsible for deciding on any asset

sales

(Recasts with details on bankruptcy and talks with Scania)

By Marie Mannes and Alessandro Parodi

STOCKHOLM, March 12 (Reuters) - Truckmaker Scania is

willing to go ahead with purchasing the only profitable business

of bankrupt battery maker Northvolt for $6 million, it said on

Wednesday.

Northvolt filed for bankruptcy on Wednesday, bringing to an

end Europe's best hope of developing a rival to major Asian

electric vehicle battery players. Any potential asset sales are

also suspended for now.

The Swedish battery maker had for months attempted to sell

some of its non-core businesses to try to rescue the main

operations that produce battery cells for electric vehicles.

An internal Northvolt memo seen by Reuters said the

bankruptcy trustee, appointed by the court to oversee the

bankruptcy process, would talk to Scania as well as to any other

suitors to determine if a sale can take place.

"It remains to be seen whether elements of the business or

its technology will be acquired and continue under new

ownership," the memo said.

In February, Northvolt said it had agreed to sell a battery

pack business called Northvolt Industrial to one of its largest

customers and close partner, Traton-owned Scania for

$6 million in cash.

An unknown consortium had made a higher bid and was also

willing to buy more assets, but Northvolt said then it was

accepting Scania's on the grounds the consortium would require

longer for its due diligence and the battery-maker needed cash

urgently, filings to the U.S bankruptcy court showed.

Earlier in the week, Northvolt postponed indefinitely a

hearing that was set for March 10, and could have led to the

Scania takeover.

A Scania spokesperson said the truckmaker still intended to

buy the business at the original purchase price it had agreed

with Northvolt.

Under the deal, Scania would take over all debt and

liabilities belonging to the business, a February filing showed.

The Scania spokesperson declined to comment on the

possibility of a third-party coming in and creating a bidding

war, calling that speculative.

A Northvolt spokesperson said the company wanted to deliver

the transactions that have been negotiated to date.

Northvolt Systems Industrial's battery packs have been sold

since 2019 and are used on drilling rigs and in construction to

power machinery such as forklifts.

With its main operations in Gdansk, Poland, it counts

Swedish mining equipment maker Epiroc and Finnish engineering

group Konecranes among its customers.