
American Battery Solutions (ABS), a designer, developer, and manufacturer of advanced lithium-ion batteries in Lake Orion, will be acquired by Komatsu, a Japanese manufacturer of construction, mining, forestry, and industrial heavy equipment. The financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
ABS operates a 120,000-square-foot technical innovation center in Lake Orion and a dedicated 170,000-square-foot, purpose-built, state-of-the art battery manufacturing facility in Springboro, Ohio. It employs nearly 200 people in the two states.
“We are excited to join the Komatsu family with its global presence,” says Subhash Dhar, founder, chairman, and CEO of ABS. “This partnership will position ABS as a leading partner for electrification of industrial equipment and commercial vehicles globally.
“We are thankful for the support of our initial investors, KCK Group, and are pleased to enable a successful exit after only 4.5 years. Komatsu’s acquisition of ABS is testament to the intellectual and manufacturing assets ABS has developed in the span of four years.”
According to the companies, ABS will continue to operate as an independent entity, retaining its existing management team. Komatsu says it’s committed to supporting ABS’ existing and new customers. ABS will continue to develop both custom and off-the-shelf solutions for on- and off-road mobility applications through the company’s Proliance and Alliance brands of products.
The announcement comes shortly after ABS launched a new transit bus battery pack for New Flyer Industries. ABS says it also has secured long-term supply agreements with leaders in key market segments, including the largest last mile delivery vehicle fleet and the largest RV manufacturer.
“After more than a year of evaluating potential battery partners, ABS stood out because of the depth of the team and their strong technical skill base, breadth of business and battery systems know-how, and battery manufacturing expertise for heavy duty markets,” says Taisuke Kusaba, president and CTO of the Development Division at Komatsu Ltd.
Kusaba adds the construction, mining, forestry, and industrial heavy equipment markets are experiencing rapid growth in electrification driven by CO2 reduction efforts, regulatory demands, ESG, and operational improvement needs.
“Together, ABS and Komatsu are committed to developing advanced energy storage systems that are optimized to power the next generation of Komatsu’s electrified equipment,” he says.