Japan's Yuasa batteries to make Bangladesh debut in Jan

Japan's leading automotive battery maker GS Yuasa International has teamed up with its local partner to enter the Bangladesh market.

GS Yuasa, the third largest manufacturer of automobile and motorcycle batteries in the world, will start production in January at a plant of Japan SolarTech (Bangladesh), a Chittagong-based joint venture.

Japan SolarTech has invested $15 million to set up the plant with a monthly production capacity of 30,000 pieces of automotive batteries. GS Yuasa will provide technical assistance.

“It is a great opportunity for us to be introducing the Japanese batteries to this market,” said Riku Imai, market development manager at the international business unit of GS Yuasa.

Yuasa is going to be the first Japanese battery to be made in Bangladesh, where the use of vehicles is growing. There is an annual demand for 1.8 million pieces of batteries in Bangladesh.

“There are many Japanese cars plying the streets of Bangladesh. But there is hardly any Japanese battery available here,” said Riku, sharing the company's business plan with reporters in Dhaka on Saturday.

The Yuasa batteries are tested, certified and recommended by renowned carmakers -- Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mazda and Mitsubishi, he said.

“The Asian market is the most important market for us, as GS Yuasa is the top market player in the region.

Bangladesh is also a key market,” he said.

Yuasa batteries will give 60 percent more durability than conventional batteries, because of the use of high quality, thick 'glass mat' in the manufacturing process, according to Riku.

In response to whether the company would set up its own manufacturing plant in Bangladesh, he said it will depend on the success of the business they are undertaking now.

GS Yuasa has 34 factories in 19 countries in the form of joint ventures or full ownership. But the company is entering Bangladesh in the form of technology transfer, a first for them.

Eastern Lubricants Blenders, a subsidiary of state-owned Padma Oil Company, will distribute the batteries through its point-of-sales network.

Syed Samiul Huq, director of Japan SolarTech, said they are in talks with other local automobile companies as well for the marketing and distribution of their batteries.

Japan SolarTech will continue investing in the Yuasa battery manufacturing plant, he added. GS Yuasa is a combination of two centuries-old companies -- GS and Yuasa -- that were merged in 2004. The company recorded about $3.05 billion in sales in 2015. “We are number three, as we stayed away from the US market due to technical differences with the American standards and GS Yuasa standards,” said Riku.

GS Yuasa is hoping to take the second position, as the Japanese company plans to acquire Panasonic Corporation's lead acid battery business for about $250 million.