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It’s Official, A123 Systems Files for IPO

A123 Systems, a lithium-ion battery company based in Massachusetts, filed its IPO registration document with the SEC on Friday. The nanotechnology battery maker says it wants to raise $175 million in an IPO.

A123 Systems makes next-gen lithium ion batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles, as well as for smaller portable devices. Thee start-up has partnered with GM and Black & Decker on large projects and already boasts 1,100 employees. It started manufacturing batteries two years ago. The company’s revenues in the first quarter of 2008 was $10.3 million.

Although A123 Systems has rifled through a prodigious amount of cash while developing its advanced battery package, the company has become an all-star in cleantech circles and will likely attract a good deal of speculative investment.  TechCrunch puts it this way:

“If you believe in a future of electric-powered vehicles, it is one way to invest in that future. Of course, other company’s are trying to create batteries for electric vehicles as well, such as Aptera and Tesla Motors (which, in addition to creating its own electric cars, has a deal to supply Mercedes-Benz with electric batteries). But they are still private.”