China's Wanxiang wins approval to buy US battery maker 30 January 2013 Last updated at 01:52 China's Wanxiang Group has won the approval of US authorities to buy US battery maker A123 Systems. Wanxiang, China's biggest auto parts maker, had bid $257m (£163m) to buy almost all of A123's assets after it went bankrupt last year. The deal had been under review amid concerns of technology developed in the US being transferred to foreign firms. Some US lawmakers also opposed the deal arguing that A123 had developed its technology using government grants. However, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS) granted its approval for the deal to go ahead. Pin Ni, president of Wanxiang America, said the firm was looking forward to "closing the transaction and to continuing to foster the technologies A123 has worked so hard to develop."