Daimler annoncerede købet af en 33 procents andel i A Power Lithium Battery Company

Den europæiske bilgigant Daimler sagde fredag ​​den 24. september, at den vil erhverve en 33 procent af aktierne i batteriproducenten Automotive Cells Company (ACC), et joint venture mellem Stellantis og Total.

Flytningen vil øge batteriproducentens størrelse med omkring 7 milliarder euro (8,2 milliarder), med Daimler ombord, som har lovet at øge batteriproduktionen til mindst 120 GWh inden 2030, tæt på de to foregående. gange. ACC har allerede haft samtaler med den franske bilproducent Renault, og begge sider er åbne for at tilføje flere partnere.

I henhold til aftalen sagde Daimler, at ACC vil levere batteriteknologi til Mercedes-Benz, en del af Daimler AG, fra og med 2025. Daimler vil investere tusindvis eller endda hundredvis af millioner af euro i joint venturet i 2022, med den samlede investering forventes at være mindre end 1 milliard euro.

Daimler's move will accelerate the transition to electric vehicles, and the partnership with Stellantis will allow the company to ensure a sufficient supply of batteries and the ability to compete with other strong rivals in the field, TSLA, and Volkswagen. In the European market, electric vehicles accounted for 17 percent of total vehicle sales in the first half of the year.

Daimler CEO Ola Kallenius said in the statement: "This investment is a strategic milestone on our road to carbon neutrality. The new partnership allows us to use mass production to secure battery supply and provide a safe and secure battery for our customers. Supply superior battery technology."

ACC, a joint venture between Stellantis and French energy giant Total last year, plans to build a super factory in France and Germany. Jefferies analyst Philippe Houchois commented that Mercedes' investment would help "get ACC off the ground" as a potential front-runner in the European battery race. "The cooperation between Germany and France has the potential to create a new battery champion in Europe," German Economy Minister Altmaier said in a separate statement.

ACC's current major competitor is Sweden's NorthvoltAB. Northvolt was co-founded in 2016 by former TSLA vice president of supply chain management peter Carlsson and another former executive, paolo Cerruti, whose clients include Volkswagen and BMW.