Polarium Starts Production in New Factory in South Africa

The new factory is located in Cape Town and established in close partnership with American Tower Corporation (ATC) in Africa. With a yearly production potential of more than 300,000 batteries, the facility further increases Polarium’s presence in sub-Saharan Africa.

After having been strategic partners since 2017, ATC Africa signed a multimillion-dollar lithium-ion battery bulk purchase agreement with Polarium in 2021, securing thousands of lithium-powered backup solutions for ATC Africa’s markets over the coming years. This deepened partnership has enabled Polarium to establish a new factory in South Africa, which when fully operational will be able to produce more than 300,000 batteries per year, equivalent to 4 Gigawatt hours.

”The inauguration of our South African manufacturing facility is yet another milestone for Polarium, and a continuation of our longstanding strategic partnership with ATC. Not only will we increase our worldwide manufacturing capacity, but we will also increase our operational agility and bring production closer to our end-markets and customers on the African continent.” says Stefan Jansson, CEO of Polarium.

In sub-Saharan Africa, a significant number of wireless telecommunication sites lack access to a reliable power grid infrastructure and have historically relied on diesel generators or lead batteries for backup power. By switching to Polarium’s solutions, ATC Africa has since 2018 been able to reduce its scope 1 emissions and reliance on fossil fuels by more than 50 percent. And through the establishment of a factory in Cape Town, South Africa, Polarium and ATC Africa will enable accelerated transition to a more sustainable telecom tower infrastructure.

“Partnering with Polarium enables us to harness renewable energy sources more effectively in furtherance of our sustainability strategy and progress our commitment to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40% by 2035 in line with science-based targets. The partnership also supports the Government of South Africa’s goal of adding more renewable sources to its energy mix and decreasing its dependence on coal by 2030” says Anne Mclaren at ATC Africa.

The factory will be powered by a combination of solar power and Polarium’s energy storage solutions, making it a net-positive contributor to the South African energy grid. More than 200 people will be directly employed in the factory, with additional job opportunities created for subcontractors.

About Polarium

Polarium provides energy storage solutions built on lithium-ion technology for the telecom, commercial, and industrial segments. Polarium’s headquarters and R&D center are situated in Sweden, with manufacturing in Mexico and Vietnam. Polarium serves customers worldwide through its global sales channels and presence in Indonesia, New Zealand, Sweden, South Africa, the UK, and the US. Today, our market-leading solutions are in use on all continents and all climate zones – from the Equator to the Arctic – ensuring that the flow of energy never stops, while enabling our customers to reduce energy costs and carbon footprint. Read more at polarium.com

About American Tower Corporation

American Tower, one of the largest global REITs, is a leading independent owner, operator and developer of multitenant communications real estate with a portfolio of over 220,000 communications sites spanning 25 countries and a highly interconnected footprint of U.S. data center facilities. For more information about American Tower, please visit the “Earnings Materials” and “Investor Presentations” sections of our investor relations website at www.americantower.com.