Orion S.A. (NYSE:OEC) has opened a Battery Innovation Center in Germany to serve the growing lithium-ion battery industry. The center will accelerate Orion's product and process development. Orion will also establish a new specialized organization for its battery business, led by Dr. Adrian Steinmetz, who joins Orion from BASF. In the U.S., Orion is building a similar plant in La Porte, Texas, which will quadruple its manufacturing capacity for acetylene-based conductive additives.