Clarios expands battery R&D partnership with Piaxo

Clarios is expanding its European battery research and development partnership with Romanian engineering company Piaxo, adding engineering support in Timișoara for next-generation low-voltage systems.

Piaxo's team in the western Romanian city will support the development and testing of low-voltage technologies for vehicle applications, including sodium-ion and lithium-ion batteries, battery management systems, inverters and supercapacitors.

The expansion comes as Clarios increases its engineering capacity in Europe around sodium-ion technology, following separate work with Altris and InoBat that validated sodium-ion cold-cranking performance at temperatures down to −40°C. The result is significant because cold-cranking performance is a key measure of how a vehicle battery performs in very low temperatures.

Piaxo has expanded its engineering organisation in Timișoara since the collaboration began and now employs nearly 50 engineering professionals. The team brings expertise in software, systems engineering, validation and related activities tied to advanced low-voltage systems.

The work will be centred at Piaxo's new site in Timișoara, where it is expanding into the mixed-use ISHO office development. The location includes engineering facilities as well as a development and testing laboratory to support cross-functional engineering and validation work.

For Clarios, the arrangement broadens its European technology footprint as automotive battery systems become more dependent on software and control systems. Clarios, which owns the Varta Automotive brand, said the partnership connects Piaxo's local engineering operation with its global technology organisation while keeping the two businesses separate.

Engineering focus

Low-voltage systems remain a core part of vehicle electrical architecture, covering functions from starting and safety systems to supporting increasingly connected features. Sodium-ion batteries have drawn attention across the industry as companies look for alternatives to lithium-based chemistries in some applications.

Romania has become a growing base for engineering and automotive technology work, with companies using local teams for software development, systems integration and testing. Timișoara in particular has developed a reputation as a technology centre with access to engineering talent and links to European automotive programmes.

Clarios said the expansion supports a broader shift in its technology work.

"This partnership with Piaxo supports our broader technology transformation and strengthens how we collaborate across engineering disciplines," said Dr. Alexander van Laack, Chief Technology Officer at Clarios.

"As low-voltage systems become more advanced, connected and software-enabled, partnerships like this help us combine complementary expertise in a structured and globally connected engineering environment," van Laack said.

Piaxo said the new facilities and deeper relationship with Clarios mark an important step in its development as an engineering employer and supplier in Romania.

"Our engineering facilities and development laboratory in Timișoara mark an important step in the development of our engineering capabilities," said Ion Petic, Chief Executive Officer at Piaxo.

"Our collaboration with Clarios creates opportunities for our engineers to contribute to globally relevant engineering work, build specialised expertise and collaborate with international engineering teams on increasingly complex technology programmes," Petic said.

Clarios says its batteries are used in one in three cars on the road, and it employs around 18,000 people in more than 100 countries.