Duracell, the battery maker owned by Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N), must face a lawsuit accusing it of stealing trade ​secrets related to German chemical company BASF's (BASFn.DE) lithium-ion battery ‌technology.

U.S. District Judge Gregory Williams on Tuesday rejected Duracell's bid to dismiss the April 2025 lawsuit related to BASF's years-long effort to manufacture lower-cost ​materials for high-powered batteries.

The Delaware judge's decision is under ​seal, pending redactions proposed by both companies.

Lawyers for ⁠Duracell and BASF did not immediately respond to requests for ​comment.

Lithium-ion batteries are used in many products including consumer electronics, electric ​vehicles, appliances, toys and energy storage systems.

In its complaint, BASF said it invested substantial resources in creating a proprietary process for producing a high-performance ​cathode material that was a "crucial" battery component.

It said Duracell ​caused substantial and irreparable injury by pretending to honor the companies' agreement to ‌collaborate, ⁠providing misappropriated secrets to a third party, and arranging for manufacturing under the false pretense it was responsible for the process.

Duracell countered that it came up with the process several ​years before working ​with BASF, and "cannot ⁠misappropriate intellectual property that was licensed to it." The Chicago-based company also said BASF waited ​too long to sue.

BASF announced a plan in ​December ⁠2023 to separate its battery chemicals business and two other businesses into autonomous units, to help boost earnings.

Berkshire, based in Omaha, Nebraska, bought ⁠Duracell ​from Procter & Gamble (PG.N) for about $2.9 billion ​in 2016. Warren Buffett was Berkshire's chief executive at the time, and remains ​chairman.