Battery Giant Pulls the Plug
July 27, 2026
Source: E & M powernews
Battery and energy storage manufacturer Varta has filed for insolvency. Several subsidiaries are also affected.
Varta AG has filed a petition with the Stuttgart Local Court to open preliminary insolvency proceedings under self-administration. According to the company, business operations are to continue without restriction in accordance with insolvency law.
In addition to the parent company, Varta Microbattery GmbH in Ellwangen, Varta Micro Production GmbH in Nördlingen, and Varta Storage GmbH are also affected due to internal group interdependencies, according to a statement. A petition for self-administered proceedings will also be filed on behalf of Microbattery GmbH.
The “Consumer Batteries” business unit is not affected by the filing. The associated companies are legally and operationally separate and financially independent.
The company cites deteriorating market conditions, weaker demand, negative currency effects, and a key customer’s decision to end the business relationship as reasons for the renewed crisis. Added to this are complex corporate structures with internal interdependencies, which have made it difficult to implement restructuring measures and have created additional liquidity needs.
“The energy storage market remains a sector with a promising future”
The updated corporate planning at the parent company level revealed a “structural financing gap,” the statement continues. This led to over-indebtedness relevant under insolvency law, particularly with regard to the company’s further development starting in 2027. The filing is not attributable to acute insolvency in the company’s ongoing business operations.
The company’s most important financial backers include Deutsche Bank as well as the financial investors RBC BlueBay, Blantyre, and Whitebox. Customers, suppliers, and business partners are to continue receiving the services they have been receiving. Employees’ wages and salaries will also continue to be paid following the filing.
“Varta has been struggling with major challenges in recent quarters,” commented CEO Michael Ostermann. The company will do everything in its power to preserve as many jobs as possible and ensure sustainable operations going forward. “The energy storage market remains an industry of the future that needs strong domestic providers and technology leaders,” said the Varta CEO.
Restructuring Just Over a Year Ago
It has been two years since Varta initiated a restructuring plan under the Corporate Stabilization and Restructuring Act (StaRUG). “The current debt situation is foreseeably blocking the Varta Group’s chances for positive business development. Without reducing our debt, we cannot make the necessary investments,” the company’s “Chief Risk Manager” was quoted as saying in a press release. The pre-insolvency proceedings under the StaRUG are intended to “permanently avert a potential insolvency of the company,” the statement said.
In September 2024, the battery manufacturer reached an agreement with creditors on a revised compromise for the restructuring plan. “The amended restructuring plan essentially corresponds structurally to the restructuring plan of August 17, 2024, and additionally includes an improved offer to the promissory note creditors,” the company announced. The StaRUG program ended in April 2025.
Since the completion of the restructuring, Varta has been owned by Austrian investor Michael Tojner and Porsche AG.
Author: Manfred Fischer