Demand for Alternative Fuels Creates Significant Opportunities for Growth

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The top three players in the global lithium-ion battery market – Samsung SDI Co. Ltd., Panasonic Corporation, and LG Chem Power Inc. cumulatively accounted for a share of over 57% in 2015 by value, rendering its vendor landscape highly consolidated. These companies create bottlenecks for the entry of new players in the market due to leverage they enjoy in procuring raw materials, states Transparency Market Research (TMR) in a new study. TMR also predicts the degree of competition between the prominent players to remain high through the forecast period between 2016 and 2024. 

“Offering dedicated services at competitive pricing and innovating application-specific performance materials are the key strategies adopted by companies to bolster growth rate,” said a lead TMR analyst. The market currently witnesses the most lucrative prospects in the automotive sector. Realizing the opportunity, Panasonic Corporation partnered with Tesla Motors in 2014 to set up units for manufacturing lithium-ion batteries across North America.

The prevalent opportunities will allow the market exhibit a robust 11.6% CAGR between 2016 and 2024. At this pace, the market is poised to reach US$77.42 bn in 2024, from a valuation of US$29.68 bn in 2015. 

Saturation in Consumer Electronics Segment to Create Opportunities for Automotive Segment to Gain Pace 

Based on power capacity, the low power lithium-ion battery held dominance in the market with a share of 35% in 2015. However, during the course of the forecast period, the 18-28 KWh segment is projected to bear other segments, reporting a CAGR of 16.7%. By application, the consumer electronics segment held lead in the market. However, industry is likely to witness market saturation in several countries, enabling the automotive sector to gain pace, thereby exhibiting the highest CAGR during the forecast period. 

Regionally, Asia Pacific holds the strongest potential for the global lithium-ion batteries market. TMR calculated the region’s share in the global lithium-ion battery market to be 48% in 2015. Experts have predicted the regional market to report growth at a significant pace, thus maintaining its lead through the report’s forecast period. 

Proliferation of Smartphones Provides Considerable Opportunities for Growth 

The high demand for consumer electronics in Asia Pacific and proliferation of smartphones have been chief drivers of the global lithium-ion battery market. The demand for smartphones and other advanced consumer electronics is poised to surge exponentially especially across developing countries. The booming population and increased willingness to splurge on advanced electronics will thus strongly support the growth of the lithium-ion battery market in the coming years. 

Besides the consumer electronics segment, the market is likely to witness accelerated pace of gains in the automotive sector. An increasing shift towards sustainable fuel is translated into high demand for electric vehicles. This will create considerable opportunities for the lithium-ion battery market, especially in North America as the region boasts rising demand for electric vehicles. The need for alternative fuels will thus provide lucrative opportunities to the market. 

High Price of Lithium-ion Batteries limits their Uptake across Developing Regions 

On the downside, the high price of lithium-ion batteries often hamper the demand arising from the automotive segment. The high cost of these batteries often results into higher prices of electric vehicles, which limits their sales across emerging nations in Asia Pacific and the Middle East. In addition, safety concerns associated with the usage of lithium-ion batteries are also creating troubles for manufacturers. 

Nevertheless, the expanding automotive segment and the demand for alternative fuel will keep the pace of gains for the global lithium-ion battery market high in the forthcoming years.