Simultaneously, the company is moving forward with plans for a major new plant in Fundulea, in what is shaping up to be one of the largest battery-related investments in Romania.
Prime Batteries currently operates the only lithium-ion battery plant in the country, launched in 2016. The company is 99.4% owned by Prime Batteries Energy Holding, with the remaining shares held by South Africa’s Metair Group, which also controls Rombat, Romania’s leading lead-acid battery producer.
Adrian Polec recently acquired a 2-hectare plot near the existing Cernica facility, where construction has begun on a complementary factory comprising three buildings: a three-story administrative block, a two-story conference and dining building connected by a glass corridor, and a production and warehouse hall. The construction cost (excluding equipment) is estimated at €2.5 million, with a total built-up area of 11,200 sqm, occupying about one-third of the land.
“We need to keep expanding to add new capacities and specific processes like painting because our suppliers can’t meet the enormous battery demand,” Polec told Profit.ro. “We’ll continue working with our suppliers, but we are also building our own capabilities. The new unit will include complementary processes like laser cutting and laser welding.”
The current Cernica facility has reached a production capacity of 2.3 GWh, following a €230 million investment.
Plans for a second, much larger factory in Fundulea remain on track. Polec owns 8.8 hectares of land in the area and has obtained permits to build a facility with a total capacity of 6 GWh, representing a projected investment of €700 million. Construction is expected to begin shortly.
Prime Batteries has established a partnership with Mercedes-Benz Energy, supplying batteries for their energy storage systems. Polec also signed a contract with Hidroelectrica, Romania’s largest energy producer, for a lithium-ion battery installation in the Crucea Nord Wind Park. Additionally, the company partnered with Monsson Group, owned by wind energy magnate Emanuel Muntmark, to deliver batteries for Romania’s largest hybrid energy storage project in Constanța.
