The Bolloré Group is a French company with revenues of nearly 6 billion euros in 2006. This leading battery manufacturer has just acquired the assets of Avestor, a Quebec firm previously operated by Hydro-Quebec and Anadarko. As a result, some fifty people will now be working on the development of lithium-metal-polymer (LMP) batteries to be used in electric cars.
This is great news for companies involved in the development of electric car technologies and high-performance batteries for this type of vehicle. In addition to strengthening the significant power of the Bolloré Group in this field of expertise, the recent purchase of Avestor will give a new boost to this industry and reinforce Quebec's position in the development of advanced terrestrial transportation. Besides the facilities near Quimper, France, the Bolloré Group will benefit from a new 12,000 square meter plant in Boucherville, which will manufacture zero-maintenance, high-performance batteries. Even though both firms were working on the same basic principles before the transaction, they had come up with totally different manufacturing techniques and procedures.
photo: Hydro-Québec