Porsche AG acquired V4Drive GmbH from the VARTA AG-Group on 4 March 2025. The sports car manufacturer is the new majority shareholder of the company, while VARTA AG will retain a minority stake without any operational influence.
Porsche and VARTA AG are combining their expertise in the development and production of high-performance cylindrical cells. V4Drive is being rebranded as V4Smart to reflect the realignment of the company.
Porsche and VARTA AG are combining their expertise in the Cells from V4Smart have already made their way into series production at Porsche as booster cells in the 911 GTS models, raising the driving performance of the iconic sports car to a new level. Production of these cells currently takes place at the Ellwangen site. The production facility there has already been brought to series-production readiness with significant input from Porsche Werkzeugbau GmbH. It is planned that from April onwards, the cylindrical cells will also be manufactured in a new facility at the Nördlingen site. and production of high-performance cylindrical cells. V4Drive is being rebranded as V4Smart to reflect the realignment of the company.
By the end of 2025, the company plans to expand the workforce to around 375 across both production sites, taking on a large number of employees from the VARTA AG-Group.
Independently of this announcement, Porsche AG intends to continue with acquiring a stake in VARTA AG, supporting the Baden-Württemberg-based VARTA AG-Group on its restructuring path. This transaction has not yet been completed.
