Wanxiang and Ener1 Receive Chinese Government Approval for Joint Venture Business to Focus on Energy Storage Solutions for Electric Vehicles and Utility Grid Applications
Monday, July 18, 2011
New York,
New York and Hangzhou, China - July 18,
2011- Ener1, Inc. (NASDAQ: HEV), a leader
in lithium-ion energy storage solutions, and
Wanxiang Electric Vehicle Co., Ltd., a division
of the Chinese conglomerate Wanxiang Group
Corporation, today announced that they have
received approval from the Chinese government
for their joint venture to co-manufacture
lithium-ion energy storage systems for the
China market.
Ener1 is a member of the
Electric Drive Transportation Association
(EDTA).
Government officials, including
Party Secretary Zhao Hongzhu from China's
Zhejiang Province, Indiana Governor Mitch
Daniels and members of the Indiana Economic
Development Corporation, were on hand for the
announcement as part of the Indiana-Zhejiang
Business Symposium in Indianapolis. The
delegation also toured Ener1's manufacturing
plant in Mt. Comfort, Ind., which is one of
three facilities the company has throughout the
Indianapolis area.
"Indiana is committed to
maintaining a climate where innovative
businesses like Ener1 can succeed," Governor
Daniels said. "We're very proud to have played
a role in bringing these two companies together
and look forward to their shared success as
they develop the next phase of the electric car
industry. Today's announcement is an example of
one of many fruitful partnerships between
Indiana and China and shows that the Hoosier
economy has a global
reach."
The new company - Zhejiang
Wanxiang Ener1 Power System Co., Ltd - will
initially focus on fulfilling existing
contracts with State Grid, which is the largest
power supplier in China. These projects include
providing lithium-ion battery systems for a
pure electric bus project for the city of
Qingdao, a pure electric car project for the
city of Hangzhou, as well as a grid energy
storage system. As capacity increases, it is
anticipated the joint venture will work with
other existing customers, such as SAIC Motor,
Dongfeng Motor, Faw Haima Motor, Chang'an
Automobile, Guangzhou Automobile and Yutong.
The joint enterprise is expected to achieve
annual cell manufacturing capacity of 300
million Ampere hours (approximately 40,000
electric vehicle battery packs) annually by
2014.
"Wanxiang has built strong and
deep customer relationships throughout China,"
said Dr. Lu Guanqiu, founder and chairman of
Wanxiang Group. "We are pleased that we have
found such a technologically-advanced business
partner like Ener1 to help us produce battery
systems for our transportation and power grid
customers."
"We're pleased to begin working
with our partners at Wanxiang, with whom we've
developed a strong relationship over the past
year, to bring our lithium-ion battery packs
and cells to one of the fastest-growing
markets," said Charles Gassenheimer, chairman
and CEO, Ener1, Inc. "We believe our technical
expertise, coupled with Wanxiang's
manufacturing aptitude, will help us quickly
deliver exceptional energy storage solutions
for customers in China."
The company also introduced its
new leadership team, including: Dr. Jun Chen,
who will serve as chief executive officer of
Zhejiang Wanxiang Ener1 Power System Co.; Mr.
Junqi Du, chief operating officer; and Dr.
Taison Tan, chief technology
officer.
About Ener1,
Inc.
Ener1, Inc. is a publicly
traded (NASDAQ: HEV) energy storage technology
company that develops compact,
lithium-ion-powered battery solutions for the
transportation, utility grid and industrial
electronics markets. Headquartered in New York
City, the company has more than 700 employees
with manufacturing locations in the United
States and Korea. Ener1 also develops
commercial fuel cell products and
nanotechnology-based materials. For more
information, visit Ener1's web site at www.ener1.com.
About Wanxiang
Group
Wanxiang Group was founded by
Dr. Lu Guanqiu, who is regarded as a legendary
entrepreneur in China for taking $500 in
start-up capital in 1969 to create a farm tool
repair shop and transforming it into one of the
largest non-government-owned companies in
China. The company is the country's largest
automotive components manufacturer, and a
conglomerate with more than $10 billion (USD)
in revenue covering businesses including
financial services, alternative energies,
agricultural products, international trading,
natural resources, real estate, private equity
and venture capital investment, and other
areas. Wanxiang Group currently employs more
than 30,000 employees worldwide, with 19
companies in 9 countries and a sales and
marketing network covering over 50 countries.
The Boston Consulting Group has listed Wanxiang
Group as one of the 100 most successful
companies in China.
Safe Harbor
Statement
Certain statements made in this
press release constitute forward-looking
statements that are based on management's
expectations, estimates, projections and
assumptions. Words such as "expects,"
"anticipates," "plans," "believes,"
"scheduled," "estimates" and variations of
these words and similar expressions are
intended to identify forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements are made
pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995, as amended. These statements are not
guarantees of future performance and involve
certain risks and uncertainties, which are
difficult to predict. Therefore, actual future
results and trends may differ materially from
what is forecast in forward-looking statements
due to a variety of factors. All
forward-looking statements speak only as of the
date of this press release and the company does
not undertake any obligation to update or
publicly release any revisions to
forward-looking statements to reflect events,
circumstances or changes in expectations after
the date of this press
release.
MEDIA
CONTACT
Brian
Sinderson
212-920-3500
X117
brian.sinderson@ener1.com