By Greg Gardner, USA TODAY and the Detroit Free Press, and Chris Woodyard, Drive On
Shares of electric vehicle battery supplier A123 Systems open today at a new low after another day of being battered as part of the fallout over defects. Also, a New York law firm began seeking investors who might want to sue management and the board over alleged violations of securities law.
On Monday, the Waltham, Mass.-based firm with plants in Livonia and Romulus, Mich., announced it would replace faulty (HP Compaq NC6000 Laptop AC Adapter) batteries shipped to five customers, including Fisker Automotive.
A123 CEO David Vieau said company officials discovered the problem in certain prismatic cells late last week at its Livonia facility. The defect appeared to be caused by one of four automated welding machines, he said. The company will start shipping replacement battery packs to five customers later this week, he said. It estimated the replacement effort will cost about $55 million that it will take as a charge to its earnings over the next several quarters.
Yesterday, shares fell 12.9% to close at $1.22 share. Since Friday, the stock has lost 29% of its value.
Yesterday, the New York law firm of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, which bills itself as a "corporate litigation boutique," issued a press release saying it was "investigating potential claims" of shareholders concerning whether the company and certain of its officers and directors have violated federal securities laws.
A123 spokesman Dan Borgasano declined to comment on the law firm's statement.
Earlier this month, Consumer Reports disclosed that a $108,000 Fisker Karma flashed an error message and locked in gear with just 180 miles on the odometer, while being driven at the magazine's Connecticut testing center. The cause of that shutdown was associated with A123's defective Canon Lp-e10 batteries, said Vieau, who declined to identify other customers who received defective battery packs.
more tags: Jvc m50 camcorder Battery, Motorola GP320 battery , Canon mvx150i Battery, TOSHIBA ADP-65DB Laptop AC Adapter, SAMSUNG PL55 Charger, Cell Phone External Battery
Recent Comments