THE EUROPEAN LEAD ACID INDUSTRY AND ITS FUTURE IN THE WORLD MARKET/

Since 1988, the European lead/acid battery industry has undergone exte nsive restructuring through mergers and acquisitions. Such development s have been commonly interpreted as a normal trend to optimize economi es-of-scale in order to face increasing competition. Although this is one of the reasons for the concentration process, other aspects should be considered in order to understand and prepare the future of the ba ttery industry. The automotive (SLI) and industrial battery sectors ha ve different challenges and opportunities. Nevertheless, for the purpo se of this study, the focus is essentially on the SLI business. Where appropriate, extrapolation will be made to the industrial battery busi ness. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.