Wanxiang Group gets control of bankrupt US lithium battery maker A123 Systems in $256-mn deal

Wanxiang Group Corp, China's largest automotive parts supplier led by Chinese billionaire Lu Guanqiu, won an auction with a $256.6-million offer for bankrupt US government backed lithium battery maker A123 Systems Inc, outbidding a joint offer from Johnson Controls and Japan's NEC Corp.

Under the deal, Wanxiang Group's US subsidiary Wanxiang America will get all of A123's technology, its manufacturing facilities in the US, its cathode powder manufacturing operations in China, and its contracts with utilities and automakers.

It will also get A123's equity interest in Shanghai Advanced Traction Battery Systems Co, A123's joint venture with Shanghai Automotive.

The sale did not include A123's business that deals with the US Defence Department, which was sold seperately to Navitas Systems for $2.25 million.

''We think adding A123 to our portfolio of businesses strongly aligns with our strategy of investing in the automotive and clean-tech industries in the US,'' Ni Pin, president of Wanxiang America, said in a statement. ''We plan to build on the engineering and manufacturing capabilities that A123 has established in the US and we are committed to making the long-term investments necessary for A123 to be successful.''

The deal must be approved by the bankruptcy court in Delaware, and most importantly, by the US Committee on Foreign Investment (Cfius), which has halted several Chinese deals.