Citing the strategic importance of the Chinese market, Johnson Controls, Inc., a Milwaukee-based manufacturer of automotive batteries, has announced plans for a $200 million automotive battery plant in Tianjin, China, that country’s largest northern coastal city.
Pending final approval, the facility will supply automakers and the aftermarket in China with what the company called “maintenance-free,” lead-acid starter batteries and advanced batteries for Start-Stop vehicles.
“This plant demonstrates our long-term commitment to the rapidly growing automotive industry in China,” Alex Molinaroli, president, Johnson Controls Power Solutions, said in a press release. “We are forecasting 25 million in annual new car sales in China by 2015.”
Johnson Controls, which plans to grow to 30 million in annual battery capacity in China by 2017, recently launched production at its Changxing facility and its Chongqing plant is scheduled to launch later this year. The company also has an automotive battery plant in Shanghai that was part of an acquisition in 2005.
Construction for the Tianjin plant will begin between 2012 and the first half of 2013 with production expected to start in late 2014. The Tianjin Plant will produce more than 6 million batteries annually at full capacity.
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