In response to the fast-developing EV (electric vehicle) market, Tokai Carbon of Japan has resolved to invest 5 billion Japanese yen for expanding the capacity of negative electrode of lithium-ion batteries, hopefully by 70% by 2020, according to a report in Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun on Feb. 27.
The report points out that demands for negative electrode will expand at an annual clip of 20% in coming years, adding that negative-electrode sales of Tokai Carbon jumped by 12.3% to 4.6 billion yen in 2017, which the company plans to raise to 10 billion yen by 2020.
Many other Japanese suppliers of lithium-battery materials are also harboring similar expansion plans, including Mitsubishi Chemical Asahi Kasei, and Toray.
In a report released on Oct. 17, 2017, Yano Research Institute of Japan predicts that thanks to rapidly growing EV market in China, plus the expansion of European EV market, the scale of the global market of four major lithium-battery materials, namely cathode, negative electrode, electrolyte, and demarcation membrane, will increase to US$22.08815 billion, 124% higher than the 2016 level.
(Contents licensed by MoneyDJ, first photo courtesy of Tokai Carbon)