WEINHEIM, Germany—Freudenberg Sealing Technologies has announced "strategic investments" in the energy and electric mobility sector ahead of the Battery Show Europe in Hanover, Germany.
The company said it acquired portions of Munich-based fuel cell manufacturer Elcore and its sister company Elcomax in early this year. Elcore, founded eight years ago, is a start-up specializing in "extremely efficient" fuel cells for stationary applications with an overall efficiency of 104 percent, Freudenberg Sealing Technologies said in a statement.
Additionally, the sealing supplier acquired a minority stake in Midland, Mich.-based Xalt Energy in February. Although it did not release specific financial details, the company called it a "mid-double-digit-million-euro" transaction.
Xalt Energy manufactures large-scale lithium ion battery cells, modules and systems for use in heavy-duty commercial vehicles such as city and transit buses. It has more than 430,500 square feet high-grade automated clean room manufacturing.
Without going into details, Claus Moehlenkamp, CEO of Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, said the project with Xalt Energy was "a long-term technological partnership," through which Freudenberg will handle sales and marketing. As part of the project, the company is bundling its fuel cell and battery business into a new division, which exclusively will handle business for mobile and stationary applications.
Moehlenkamp said the acquisitions represent Freudenberg's focus on energy solutions, an area that it has been researching for a number of years.
"The successful development of markets and technologies depends on a core issue—energy—whether the work involves hybrids, vehicles with battery-powered electric motors or those using fuel cells as an energy source," Moehlenkamp said. "With the recent transactions, we now have extensive know-how and specific product and system solutions for the automotive and energy market segment for fuel cells and lithium ion batteries."