A type of Chinese battery, branded "Rhinoceros," has successfully landed in Kenya and quietly entered the life of the locals.

The battery comes from the city of Anyang, in central China's Henan Province, which is also known as the hometown of the world famous oracle bone inscriptions.

While it opens a new market for Chinese enterprises, the small battery creates new job opportunities for Kenyans.

The win-win situation is hailed by the governments and top leaders of both countries.

The staffs at the Anyang Battery Factory, where the "Rhinoceros" battery is produced, were lucky enough to meet with former Chinese Communist Party chief Jiang Zemin and Kenyan ex-president Daniel Arap Moi.

Wang Tiancheng, deputy head of the state-owned company, said that they had built the Jinzhong Battery Company in Kenya under the "going out" strategy implemented since 1993.

The company generated an export value of 6 million US dollars in each of the past few years.

Wang said the market demand for batteries is enormous in Africa.The "Rhinoceros" battery has a market share of 40 percent in Kenya alone. Moreover, it is sold in Uganda, Tanzania, Somalia, Ethiopia and other neighboring countries as well.

The Chinese battery company was commended by the Chinese embassy to Kenya as the most successful example in opening the overseas branch and cited by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce as a banner of China's overseas factories.

The company is planning to increase five production lines in Kenya-based factory to double its production capacity, Wang said.

Meanwhile, the "Rhinoceros" battery company prepares to open an office in Gambia to exploit market in western African.

As China's domestic battery market was on the verge of saturation in 1993, many battery factories are facing the threat of being merged or shut-down.

Under such circumstance, Anyang Battery Factory decided to march into the African market.

On one hand, Africa has a large population and appears to be a market with great potential. The shortage of thermal power brings about a huge demand for batteries in Africa. Yet there are few battery plants on the continent and the majority of batteries are imported. On the other hand, Chinese batteries have been exported in Africa for a long period of time and have already gained good prestige among local customers.

In 1997, the Kenyan government made policies to attract foreign investment. Supported by China's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (the former Ministry of Commerce), Anyang Battery Factory opened its first battery plant in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, and then opened more workshops in 2002.

Wang said they chose "Rhinoceros" to be the brand because it caters to the collective psyche of the locals. Africans have a special preference of rhinoceroses, just like many Chinese like tigers.

Kenyans have gradually come to know and accept "Rhinoceros" batteries because of its high quality and good credibility. Today,"Rhinoceros" has already become the first choice of many locals, Wang said.

Kenya is very optimistic about cooperation with the Chinese battery plant and the 150 local workers are working with great passion. The overseas enterprise helps to promote the friendship between the two countries, Wang added.

Source: Xinhua