Tata Chemicals in talks to buy battery biz of UK's Johnson Matthey

Tata Chemicals Ltd is in talks to buy the battery materials business of London-based Johnson Matthey. The deal will help group company Tata Motors expand its range of electric vehicles and secure a cost advantage over rival carmakers in the EV space, as none of them has in-house battery materials manufacturing ability. Tata Group has hired Goldman Sachs as one of the investment bankers for the proposed deal, whose value is estimated at USD 500-700 million.