Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri and Faist Electronics, a Faist Group company specializing in the development and supply of complete energy storage systems (including control and power electronic devices), have founded Power4Future, a joint venture dedicated to the production of lithium-ion batteries.
The JV will set out to construct a battery production facility, followed by efforts to provide design, assembly, marketing and after-sales services for modules and battery packs, including control devices such as battery management systems (BMS) and ancillary systems (such as fire protection and air-conditioning for complete battery stationary systems). The expected cumulative production is expected to exceed 2GWh in five years.
Gianfranco Natali, president and founder of Faist Group, commented, “We are proud of this partnership with Fincantieri, the symbol of Italian shipbuilding excellence and more. In a ‘green’ energy setting, lithium-ion batteries and energy storage systems will be the new ‘fuel tank’ for the maritime and land mobility of the future. Together with Fincantieri, this is the vision that guided us toward creating Power4Future, a name that reveals our commitment to future generations to do our best for a completely ‘green’ future. At Faist, we see the new production company, Power4Future, as a convergence of internationally unparalleled technological know-how and experience, capable of ensuring a successful leading position in the production of lithium-ion batteries and energy storage systems for various applications.”
According to the companies, Power4Future will have a presence in several markets including automotive (with particular reference to commercial vehicles), telecommunication and industrial (material handling machines), where Faist Electronics is already active, but also in the marine and land-based energy storage applications, where Fincantieri is well established.
Giuseppe Bono, CEO of Fincantieri, concluded, “Future environmental protection regulations will drive shipowners to adopt new alternative solutions to those currently based on internal combustion engines, in order to produce and use energy. Faced with the need for greater storage capacity, lithium-ion batteries today are the only solution that is both technically and economically sustainable for full-electric vessels, which currently makes them one of the most important assets not only for the naval industry but also for all the other sectors where we will be able to operate with this new company.”