Good morning!
It’s Friday, February 27.
This week’s introduction is a solemn one.
Tomorrow evening marks forty years since Olof Palme, then Prime Minister of Sweden, was shot and killed on a Stockholm street. On February 28, 1986, after leaving the cinema with his wife Lisbeth, Palme was walking home without bodyguards. This was still common for Swedish politicians at the time. He was shot at close range on Sveavägen and died shortly thereafter. The assassin disappeared into the night.
The murder shook Sweden to its core. This was not only the killing of a sitting prime minister; it was the rupture of a national self-image. Sweden, long accustomed to viewing itself as open, safe, and removed from the political violence seen elsewhere, suddenly faced a different reality. The sense of innocence, if it ever truly existed, was fractured.
What followed was one of the largest and most debated criminal investigations in Swedish history. Decades of inquiries, theories, suspects, false leads, and public frustration ensued. In 2020, prosecutors concluded that the likely perpetrator was Stig Engström, the so-called “Skandia man,” who had died years earlier. The case was formally closed. However, as was noted in a newsletter edition a number of weeks ago, this has faced strong criticism from the chief prosecutor in Stockholm.
Few events have left such a deep imprint on the Swedish soul. Even today, conversations about Palme’s death quickly reveal how personal it feels. Many people carry a firm conviction about who was responsible even when those convictions differ sharply from their neighbour’s. The assassination has become more than a criminal case; it is a national memory, shaped by grief, politics, suspicion, and time.
Forty years later, the night of February 28 still casts a long shadow.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Phil
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Word of the week
EFTERTANKE [EF-ter-tang-keh]
reflection; careful thought.
American Lyten Closes $5 Billion Deal for Northvolt’s Swedish Battery Operations
Attribution: Dagens Industri
The long-awaited takeover is now official: U.S.-based Lyten has finalized its nearly $5 billion acquisition of Northvolt’s key Swedish assets, with battery production set to restart later this year.
In a statement, Lyten confirmed it has completed the purchase of Northvolt’s battery manufacturing facilities in Skellefteå and its R&D center, Northvolt Labs, in Västerås. The deal, valued at just under $5 billion, includes roughly 6 GWh of existing battery production capacity and more than 160 hectares of land, positioning Lyten to scale operations in Europe at speed.
Production at the Skellefteå plant is expected to resume in the second half of 2026, with initial deliveries of battery cells planned soon after. Lyten Sweden CEO Matthias Arleth said the company aims to ramp up operations and unlock the “full potential” of the assets, while chairman and co-founder Lars Herlitz emphasized the strategic importance of batteries for energy security and industrial competitiveness.
The transaction also has a digital infrastructure twist: EQT portfolio company EdgeConneX is set to acquire land at the site for a data center campus that could become one of Europe’s largest.
Local leaders in Skellefteå welcomed the announcement, calling it a boost not only for regional employment but for Sweden’s broader ambitions to build a resilient battery value chain spanning suppliers, research, and talent attraction. After months of uncertainty around Northvolt’s future, the message from Lyten and municipal officials is clear: the green industrial transition in northern Sweden is back on track—and aiming bigger than before.
Postcard from the North
The French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle visiting Malmö this week
In other news
🛫 Sweden’s governing Tidö parties have proposed significantly tougher rules for deporting foreign nationals convicted of crimes, including lowering the threshold so that all offences resulting in a sentence harsher than a fine can lead to expulsion. The proposal would also require prosecutors to formally request deportation in cases that result in prison sentences and remove special protections for individuals who arrived in Sweden before age 15. Migration Minister Johan Forssell says the changes could increase deportations sixfold and would create the strictest rules in the Nordic region if approved.
☢️ Sweden’s Defence Minister Pål Jonson says he does not rule out the possibility of nuclear weapons being stationed in Sweden in wartime, stating that all options must remain open to safeguard national security. Speaking to Sveriges Radio, he noted that while there is no interest within NATO to place nuclear weapons in Sweden in peacetime, the situation could differ during war. Swedish parliamentary parties agreed in 2023 to prohibit nuclear weapons on Swedish soil in peacetime, but no such agreement exists for wartime.
🕶️ Sweden’s Civil Affairs Minister Erik Slottner has criticized the handling of private footage recorded by Meta’s smart glasses, after reports revealed that images and videos are manually reviewed in countries such as Kenya. Investigations by Göteborgs-Posten and Svenska Dagbladet found that the glasses can capture private situations without people being aware, with material then analyzed outside the EU. Slottner says this raises serious privacy and security concerns and has demanded clear answers from Meta about where the data is being sent.
Liberals Reject Pause on Teen Deportations as Political Pressure Mounts
Attribution: Omni News
Sweden’s ruling coalition is under intensifying pressure over the so-called “teen deportations,” but the Liberals have now shut the door on the opposition’s proposal for an immediate pause – at least for now.
The Liberals announced they will not back an opposition-led effort to temporarily halt deportations of young adults who grew up in Sweden but lose their residence status when they turn 18. Party leader Simona Mohamsson said the government is “working on a solution,” adding that coalition partners and the Sweden Democrats have agreed in principle to introduce a form of legal “safety valve” in the system. The decision effectively blocks the opposition’s attempt to secure a majority in the parliamentary social insurance committee.
The controversy stems from cases in which teenagers, often fully integrated and schooled in Sweden, are deported upon reaching adulthood. A guiding ruling from the Migration Court of Appeal clarified that extended residency after 18 requires special grounds beyond family ties, tightening the legal framework. Public opinion polls show broad opposition to the deportations, and business groups, including representatives from the tech sector and engineering unions, have warned of a potential “brain drain” if skilled workers avoid Sweden over fears of family separation.
Migration Minister Johan Forssell has said a solution is forthcoming but has yet to present a detailed timeline, prompting opposition parties to demand clarity. Meanwhile, commentators note that the Sweden Democrats’ shifting tone on the issue may reflect voter backlash rather than a fundamental policy rethink. For now, the debate underscores a broader tension in Swedish politics: how to reconcile stricter migration controls with economic competitiveness and public sentiment.
Swede-ish Notes
Attribution: Vasaloppet
From Sälen to Mora – and 500 Years Back
On Sunday, tens of thousands of skiers will set off from Sälen toward Mora in the 90-kilometer grind that is Vasaloppet.
Some chase personal bests. Some chase survival. All of them follow a track that, according to tradition, was first carved into Swedish history in the winter of 1520–1521.
The legend is well known. A young nobleman, Gustav Eriksson, fled north through Dalarna after the Stockholm Bloodbath. In Mora, he tried to rally support against Danish rule and was initially rebuffed. He skied west toward Norway, only for Mora’s men to reconsider, pursue him, and persuade him to return. That man would become Gustav Vasa, crowned king in 1523 and often described as the founder of the modern Swedish state.
The race itself is far more recent. The first Vasaloppet was held in 1922, inspired by journalist Anders Pers and organized by IFK Mora. Since then, more than 1.9 million participants have crossed a Vasaloppet finish line across its various races. It is now considered the world’s largest long-distance cross-country ski event.
What makes Vasaloppet endure is not just history, but scale and ritual. The early-morning start. The blue-and-yellow banners. The blueberry soup stations that arrive with almost liturgical regularity. It is part endurance test, part national pageant.
On Sunday, as skiers pass the halfway point at Evertsberg and push through the final stretch toward Mora, they are not just completing a race. They are rehearsing a story Sweden has been telling about itself for five hundred years. A tale of hardship, resolve, and forward motion … through snow.
Do you have a story from the past that could be worth sharing? I bet you do! Or would you like to see something else in the newsletter and have suggestions for topics? If so, please reach out!
