Sanyo goes Green

Sanyo released its Eneloop series - a range of rechargeable batteries. This went so well that the company has reported 60 million sales in less than three years (or 50% of the market for that product niche). The advantage?: the batteries last longer and are ready to be used when they are bought. The Eneloop series has expanded to include reusable solar chargers as well as other products. Nintendo Wii – for example – is using Sanyo produced battery packs. However only 400 million rechargeable batteries are sold globally, compared to a total disposable sales of 40 billion. The company now looks to enter the market for hybrid-electric car batteries and cooperates with Volkswagen on Lithium-ion Battery Systems (evertiq reported). Another big part of Sanyo’s new business strategy is solar technology. The company is said to consider €477 million in capital spending on that technology. The production of solar panels at Sanyo's Hungarian facility in Dorog is said to triple in the next few years (evertiq reported).