What Hydra does

Hydra a.s. is a privately held Czech Republic-based industrial foil capacitor manufacturer founded in 1920 in Berlin, Germany, with over 100 years of continuous operating history. Originally partnered with AEG for 60 years, the company produces more than 20 million capacitors per year across two production facilities — its headquarters in Jicin, Czech Republic (representing 50% of production) and a second plant in Vietnam that serves Asian markets and high-volume European orders. Hydra's legal form is an akciová společnost (a.s.), a Czech public limited company structure, though it is not publicly listed.

Hydra's product portfolio spans six industrial foil capacitor categories: power factor correction, motor, lighting, filter, DC link, and defibrillator capacitors. These components target OEMs across heat pump manufacturing, electric motors, blind systems, consumer electronics, ventilation, air conditioning, industrial technology, and renewable energy production. Named enterprise customers include SOMFY (motor/blinds), Secop (refrigeration), Acuity Brands (lighting), BSH Bosch (home appliances), and Slavitech (technology manufacturing).

Hydra's business model is direct sales-led, with the company working closely with purchasing managers at industrial manufacturers to align products with customer specifications. Pricing is not publicly disclosed. Distribution is managed through the two regional production facilities, and marketing relies on industry trade shows (electronica South China 2023, PCIM Europe 2022) and a multilingual website available in English, German, Czech, Simplified Chinese, and Vietnamese. The company is privately held with no disclosed parent, investors, or funding rounds.

Name

Hydra

Legal name

Hydra a.s.

Website

https://hydra-components.cz

Company type

Private

Founded year

1920

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Hydra a.s. is a Czech Republic-based industrial foil capacitor manufacturer founded in 1920, producing over 20 million capacitors per year across facilities in Jicin and Vietnam. It serves OEM manufacturers in heat pumps, motors, lighting, consumer electronics, and renewable energy with six capacitor product lines.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Capacitors

NAICS

Capacitor, Resistor, Coil, Transformer, and Other Inductor Manufacturing (334416)

akta.pro primary industry

Capacitors (Ceramic/Film/Electrolytic/Tantalum/Supercapacitors) (HDAHANAB)

Keywords

• Industrial capacitors
• Foil capacitors
• Power factor correction
• Motor capacitors
• Defibrillator capacitors

Headquarters

HQ city

Jicin

HQ country

Czechia

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Capacitor Sales: Hydra generates revenue through the manufacture and sale of various types of industrial capacitors including power factor correction, motor, lighting, filter, DC link, and defibrillator capacitors. The company produces over 20 million capacitors per year across two production facilities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Hydra develops, produces, and sells high-quality industrial foil capacitors across six product categories: Power Factor Correction, Motor, Lighting, Filter, DC Link, and Defibrillator capacitors. The company manufactures more than 20 million capacitors per year at two production facilities (Czech Republic and Vietnam), supplying bulk capacitors engineered to meet and exceed industry standards for large-scale industrial and electronic applications.

Product overview

Hydra is a capacitor manufacturing company offering a unified portfolio of industrial foil capacitors across six distinct product categories. The product line includes Power Factor Correction Capacitors, Motor Capacitors, Lighting Capacitors, Filter Capacitors, DC Link Capacitors, and Defibrillator Capacitors. All products are bulk/high-volume manufactured capacitors designed for industrial-scale applications including heat pumps, electric motors, blinds, consumer electronics, ventilation technology, air conditioning, industrial technology, and renewable energy production. The company operates two production facilities producing over 20 million capacitors per year.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Power Factor Correction Capacitors Industrial foil capacitors designed to improve power factor in electrical systems, helping reduce energy costs and improve power quality in industrial applications. Targeted at industrial manufacturers and OEMs needing bulk capacitor supply.
• Motor Capacitors Capacitors designed for electric motor applications, providing starting and running capacitance for various motor types in industrial and consumer equipment. Used by electric motor manufacturers and OEMs in heat pumps, ventilation, blinds, and consumer appliances.
• Lighting Capacitors Capacitors specifically designed for lighting applications, used in fluorescent and HID lighting systems for ballast and power factor correction. Targeted at lighting manufacturers and OEMs.
• Filter Capacitors Industrial foil capacitors used for filtering applications in electronic circuits, helping to smooth voltage fluctuations and reduce electromagnetic interference. Targeted at electronics manufacturers and industrial OEMs.
• DC Link Capacitors Capacitors designed for DC link applications in power electronics, used in converters and inverters for energy storage and voltage smoothing. Targeted at power electronics manufacturers and renewable energy system OEMs.
• Defibrillator Capacitors Specialized high-energy capacitors designed for medical defibrillator equipment, capable of delivering rapid charge and discharge for cardiac emergency applications. Targeted at medical device manufacturers.

Named customers5 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• AEGcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHydra was teamed with AEG for 60 years before branching out on its own. This long-standing partnership established Hydra's expertise in the capacitor industry.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Vishay Intertechnology: Vishay is a global broad-line passive component manufacturer with a significant industrial film and foil capacitor portfolio. It overlaps with Hydra in motor-run, lighting, and DC-link capacitors while competing in a much wider semiconductor and resistor product range.
• KEMET (Yageo): KEMET, owned by Yageo, is a global capacitor manufacturer offering film, tantalum, ceramic, and electrolytic capacitors. It competes with Hydra across industrial applications but as part of a significantly broader passive-component portfolio serving global Tier-1 OEMs.
• Panasonic Industry: Panasonic Industry manufactures a wide range of capacitors including film and electrolytic types for automotive, industrial, and consumer markets. It competes with Hydra in motor-run and PFC capacitors as part of a much broader electronic-components portfolio.
• AVX (Kyocera): AVX, a Kyocera company, manufactures a wide range of capacitors including film, tantalum, and ceramic types. It competes with Hydra in selected industrial capacitor categories as part of a much broader passive-component and interconnect offering.
• EPCOS (TDK Electronics): EPCOS, part of TDK, is a major manufacturer of passive electronic components including film/foil capacitors, inductors, and surge arresters. It competes with Hydra in industrial PFC and power-electronics capacitors but as part of a much broader component portfolio serving Tier-1 OEMs globally.

Direct peers

• Nichicon: Nichicon is a Japanese capacitor manufacturer specializing in aluminum electrolytic, film, and power-electronics capacitors. Its industrial capacitor portfolio competes directly with Hydra's motor, lighting, and PFC products in the European and Asian OEM market.
• Ducati Energia: Ducati Energia is an Italian manufacturer of capacitors for power-factor correction, motor-run, and industrial applications. It is a direct competitor to Hydra in the European industrial capacitor market with similar product categories and customer overlap.
• Cornell Dubilier: Cornell Dubilier is a US-based manufacturer of capacitors for industrial, power, and military applications. Its portfolio of film, foil, and electrolytic capacitors directly overlaps with Hydra's product categories and targets similar OEM customers.
• WIMA: WIMA is a German manufacturer of film and foil capacitors specializing in industrial, automotive, and power-electronics applications. It competes head-to-head with Hydra in the same foil-capacitor niche, serving European industrial OEMs with similar product categories (PFC, DC link, motor-run).
• ICAR (Industrie Cavi e Conduttori): ICAR is an Italian manufacturer specializing in power capacitors for PFC, motor-run, and industrial applications. It directly competes with Hydra in European industrial markets with overlapping product categories and end-customer segments.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/hydracapacitors
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hydra-a-s-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hydra