Analysts at Wood Mackenzie have looked at plans for the incoming decade and concluded that about 119 manufacturing sites will be up and running by 2030. China currently sits firmly in the driving seat, with Asia Pacific comprising 80% of global manufacturing capacity, but Europe is catching up, PV Magazine reports.
Grid-tied energy storage applications and electric vehicles are riding on a wave of substantial growth. Hence, lithium-ion batteries, a key item for such products, have to be produced at a similarly growing rate. Compared to 2019 production levels, the global production capacity pipeline will skyrocket fourfold, reaching 1.3 terawatt-hours (TWh) in 2030.
Research firm Wood Mackenzie has compiled production capacity plans over the next decade from 50 vendors, for which the analysts counted 119 battery manufacturing sites.
Asia Pacific is likely to retain its leading position in the battery business with manufacturers CATL, LG Chem, BYD and SK Innovation leading the global pack. The region currently accounts for about 80% of global manufacturing capacity, and this will only change marginally over the next 10 years, according to the report.
“Within Asia Pacific, China dominates the pipeline capacity and is expected to double its capacity from 345 gigawatt-hour (GWh) in 2020 to more than 800 GWh by 2030,” says Wood Mackenzie senior analyst Mitalee Gupta. “In addition to local vendors’ rapid expansion in China, foreign manufacturers such as LG Chem, Samsung SDI and SK Innovation have also been adding new lines after they became eligible for subsidies from the Chinese government in 2019.”
