Panasonic Accelerates Investment in Air-to-water Heat Pump Production in its Czech Factory

09/09/2022


Panasonic Corporation announced that it would invest about 20 billion yen （approx. 145 million euros) in its Czech Plant by the Fiscal Year ending in March 2026 to strengthen the production of air-to-water heat pumps (A2W), which have been experiencing growing demand in Europe.

 Air-to-water heat pumps, which collect and use heat from the air, emit less CO2 than conventional combustion heaters that use fossil fuels. Demand for these eco-friendly heating systems is growing in the European market.

Panasonic started the production of A2W indoor units at its plant in Plzen, Czech Republic (Panasonic AVC Networks Czech [PAVCCZ]) in 2018. Since then, it has been quickly responding to the European market needs while saving further emissions by local production for local markets in Europe.

Currently, a shift in energy sources reducing gas and other fossil fuels while enabling for more electrification is rapidly taking place in Europe. Due to the rising environmental awareness and the recent circumstances surrounding energy supply, there has been a pressing need for Panasonic to establish a production capacity to meet such growing demand.

The investment will enable PAVCCZ to start the production of outdoor units in the next fiscal year, in addition to indoor units already being manufactured. The company aims to increase its annual production capacity to 500,000 units by the Fiscal Year ending in March 2026.

Panasonic A2W heat pump system features a unique technology that allows heaters to maintain their heating capacity even at low outdoor temperatures. The company also launched an IoT-based maintenance business in Denmark in the last fiscal year, and has continued to expand its business through an enlarged sales structure in each country. Panasonic will strive to achieve further growth in the heating, cooling and ventilation business, which is one of its key businesses, while contributing to the global environment.


Czech Plant Overview

Name

Panasonic AVC Networks Czech, s.r.o. (PAVCCZ)

Location

U Panasoniku 1, 320 84 Plzen, CZECH REPUBLIC

Date of establishment

March 13, 1996

Activities

Manufacture of air-to-water heat pumps and Blu-ray players/recorders