Toyota Teams With Panasonic to Create More Earth-friendly Batteries

Toyota Motor Corp. and Panasonic Corp. are setting up a joint venture to research, manufacture and sell batteries for ecological autos, an increasingly lucrative sector amid concerns about global warming.The Japanese automaker and the Japanese electronics maker said in a joint statement Tuesday that Toyota will take a 51 percent stake and Panasonic 49 percent in the joint venture, which is to be running by the end of 2020.The companies have been studying working together on batteries since 2017. They did not say how much would be invested in the joint venture.Panasonic will transfer equipment, assets and workers from its plants in Japan and China to the joint venture, which will employ 3,500 workers from both companies. Separately, Panasonic already has invested in a battery factory with U.S. electric car maker Tesla Inc.  Continue reading...