Philippe Ulrich, the group’s Asia sales director, will lead the new unit, Saft Japan KK.

The opening of the regional subsidiary “is a major strategic step,” as the company aims to intensify its focus on grid development in Japan in the coming years, in addition to the country’s transportation and telecoms sectors, according to an emailed statement.

Until now, Saft’s Hong Kong unit has managed the group’s operations in Asia, in cooperation with Sumitomo, its partner for almost 30 years.

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