Lithium battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited (CATL) has bought a large stake in a Finnish firm as it looks to move into the European electric vehicle market.
The Ningde, China-based battery maker bought a 22% stake in the auto supplier for an undisclosed fee, reported newswire Reuters.
CATL will partner with Valmet Automotive to supply European carmakers with battery packs and drivetrain solutions for electric cars.
“Our shared aim is to develop a strong position in the European electrical vehicles market,” Reuters quoted CATL chief operating officer Jia Zhou as saying.
CATL is now reportedly planning to build a factory in Europe. It already has offices in France, Germany and Sweden.
Last year the firm is believed to have tripled its production capacity for lithium-ion car batteries and plans to grow its battery capacity to 50GW/h by 2020.
