May 25, 2023: European lead battery producer the Banner Group revealed on May 17 it is set to expand in China under a licensing deal with Leoch.
Under the terms of the partnership, batteries giant Leoch will manufacture certain premium batteries in China under the Banner brand for the domestic market.
Until now, Austria-headquartered Banner has had a presence in the Chinese market solely through individual customers.
Banner Group commercial CEO Andreas Bawart said the move was in line with the firm’s plans to acquire new markets in Asia and the Americas, as well as cooperating with partners outside Europe.
“We have now found the ideal partner for this objective in China and therefore the time is ripe for market growth.”
Leoch owner and chairman Dong Li said the Banner brand already had an excellent reputation in Asia and the partners had a shared commitment to high standards quality and innovation.
“These shared values also open up new opportunities for us to expand our teamwork in other product and application areas and we look forward with great anticipation to a successful cooperation.”
Banner, which celebrated 85 years in the battery business in 2022, is Austria’s only car battery producer and counts itself as being among the industry’s five largest manufacturers in Europe.
Leoch, with annual sales revenues of more than $1.75 billion, sells its products to over 100 countries.
In March, Leoch confirmed plans to build a manufacturing plant in Mexico to ramp up its market presence in the Americas.
Photo, from left: Banner technical CEO Thomas Bawart, Dong Li and Andreas Bawart at Banner’s HQ in Leonding