Panasonic Corp. announced Thursday it has reached an agreement to turn Sanyo Electric Co. and Panasonic Electric Works Co. into wholly owned units by April to beef up its energy business amid intensifying global competition.
"The rapid growth of environmental and energy-related businesses, including in emerging economies, offers the chance to expand even as competition intensifies in such sectors as rechargeable and solar cells and electric vehicles," they said in a joint statement.
"To compete in new markets, we must speed up the implementation of our strategies and strengthen our power as a group," the statement said.