Varta battery research facility in Graz to expand later this year

Founded at the end of 1887, Varta AG was established in 1904 as a subsidiary of Accumulatoren-Fabrik AFA. Headquartered in Ellwangen, Germany, this brand is behind a wide range of products, including micro batteries, energy storage systems, household batteries, as well as battery packs and large cells for industrial applications, both in the automotive and non-automotive sectors. 

Varta AG already has a research facility in Austria, at Graz, which is crewed by around 30 specialists. The new Varta Innovation Hub, currently still in development, will increase the size of the research team to 50 members and will allow the company to increase its efforts towards developing post-lithium solutions. Full operations will commence in early Q2 2024, reveals Varta.

Rainer Hald, CTO of VARTA AG, says that this move comes as a logical consequence of the company's effort in consolidating its position as one of the leading brands in battery technology. The official highlighted that Varta's technology hub in Graz "is a key component of our future viability and allows us to quickly achieve reliable results in pre-development, which we can then quickly transfer to series production of innovative technologies."

The team in Graz will focus on next-gen applications while continuing to refine existing lithium-ion solutions for all areas, from medical and IoT applications to the industrial sector. After completion, the research facility in Graz will be one of Europe's leading ones in the field. 

While Varta is well-known in many markets for its consumer-grade batteries and rechargeable batteries, the brand is also developing and selling phone chargers, such as the 38 W GaN Speed Charger, which currently goes for $35.06 on Amazon.