Continental, Osram Plan Lighting JV

Continental AG and vehicle lighting supplier Osram Licht GmbH plan to launch a joint venture to develop and market advanced lighting systems.

Osram says the companies have signed a term sheet for a venture, Osram Continental GmbH that would develop adaptive LED lighting products and link them to car-to-car and car-to-infrastructure connectivity systems.

Sources tell Reuters the venture is expected to begin operations in 2018 with initial annual sales of at least €400 million ($465 million). Handelsblatt cites sources who say the new company will launch with a workforce of some 1,500 people.

Osram, considered the pioneer in LED lighting for cars, began focusing on the automotive market two years ago when it spun off its €2 billion general lighting operations.