Volkswagen partner Gotion High-Tech from China is acquiring a 25-percent stake in Slovakian battery company InoBat. At the beginning of 2023, the two companies had already agreed on establishing a battery plant in Europe.
InoBat: “Groundbreaking” investment
In a statement, InoBat called the undisclosed investment “groundbreaking” and the first step by a Chinese battery manufacturer into a European start-up. The “Gotion-InoBat-Batteries (GIB) transaction” had been in the works for more than a year. The partners are focused on localizing the battery value chain, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe, and developing “green battery materials” in Morocco.
Gotion plans further collaborations in Europe
According to Li Zhen, founder, chairman, and CEO of Gotion High-Tech, the company would like to collaborate with other leading European companies as well. The Chinese company is best known as a partner of Volkswagen. Since 2021, the German automaker has been the company’s largest single shareholder. Gotion acts as a technology partner for Vokswagen’s PowerCo battery cell factory in Salzgitter and is expanding its cell production independently in Göttingen.
