A123Systems Spins Off New Battery Firm, Drops Out of Chrysler Deal, Posts Quarterly Loss

Gregory T. Huang8/11/10Comments (2)Follow @gthuang

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A123Systems’ $370 million IPO last September was the shot heard around the world—at least the alternative-energy world. I can personally attest to the fact that energy storage and electric vehicle companies from coast to coast were following the Watertown, MA-based battery maker’s performance very closely. Now they have some new things to chew on.

Late yesterday, A123 (NASDAQ: AONE) reported its second-quarter financial results, and they were a bit disappointing—revenues rose 14 percent to $22.6 million but the firm’s net loss increased to $34.2 million, up from $21.9 million in the same period last year.

The company says it is scaling up its lithium ion battery production for big customers like power utilities, and automakers who want to expand their hybrid and electric vehicle offerings. A123 also plans to open a new manufacturing facility in Michigan, where it has a growing presence.

More interesting, perhaps, is the news that A123 has spun off a separate company, called 24M Technologies, which is being supported by A123 and unspecified venture capitalists, to develop a hybrid energy-storage system (tested in part at MIT) that combines aspects of lithium-ion and flow battery technologies. The news was reported by CNET, Earth2Tech, Mass High Tech, and other media outlets.

And lastly, A123 said it has dropped out of Chrysler’s electric vehicle development program (which had been announced last year), because of a competing bid from an unnamed technology vendor. To balance that news, the company said it has been chosen by an unnamed major automaker to be the sole development partner for an expanded hybrid-electric vehicle line.

Gregory T. Huang is Xconomy's National IT Editor and the Editor of Xconomy Boston. You can e-mail him at gthuang@xconomy.com, call him at 617-252-7323, or follow him on Twitter at @gthuang.