(Reuters) – Global lithium-ion battery capacity may rise over five-fold to 5,500 gigawatt-hour (GWh) by 2030 from 2021, consultancy Wood Mackenzie said on Tuesday, while cautioning that supply of batteries will remain tight this year.
“Electric vehicle market accounts for almost 80% of lithium-ion battery demand and high oil prices are supporting more markets to roll out zero-emission transportation policies, causing demand for lithium-ion battery to skyrocket,” Wood Mackenzie consultant Jiayue Zheng said in a report.
U.S. carmakers Ford Motor Co and General Motors Co recently announced their EV expansion plans, with Ford set to launch seven electric models in Europe by 2024 and deepen its partnership with Volkswagen to produce a second EV for the European market.
GM has partnered with South Korea’s POSCO Chemical to make battery materials in Canada, with a goal of having the new plant running by 2025.
Battery makers are responding to this rising demand with massive expansion plans, Wood Mackenzie said.
However, having met shortages last year due to EV market demand and rising raw material prices, battery supply will not meet demand until 2023, the consultancy added.
Tesla supplier Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd leads the expansion among battery makers, according to Wood Mackenzie. A recent media report said CATL was weighing sites for a $5 billion plant in North America, Mexico and Canada.
Many more new plant announcements are expected in 2022, the consultancy added.
(Reporting by Ashwini Raj in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
