Mumbai: Consumer goods manufacturer Sony is selling its battery division to Japanese firm Murata, a company responsible for developing wireless components and robots.
The company started off its battery venture as early as 1975 and became the first ever company to commercially sell lithium-ion batteries in 1991. With declining profitability in its business, the company has been selling off businesses and assets to stabilise its core operations.
According to a report by Engadget, Murata will likely acquire Sony Energy Devices Corporation subsidiary and manufacturing plants in China and Singapore; alkaline batteries and USB chargers won’t be a part of this deal.
While the battery arm is a part of Sony’s lucrative sensor division, it suffered a massive loss of $270 million in 2015.
Moving on, Sony started commercialising the lithium-ion batteries, primarily for smartphones. According to the report, Samsung claimed that it currently holds the top position in small lithium-ion battery business, and has held the position since 2010.
According to Sony, the agreement is non-binding in nature and due diligence and negotiation of detailed terms and conditions of the transfer is still pending.
Executives from both companies are planning to enter an agreement by mid-October 2016, and subsequently wrap up the deal by March 2017.
