Japan Battery Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The Japan battery market is expected to grow at a CAGR of around 8.5% during the forecast period of 2020-2025. Factors such as increased spending, increasing consumer electronics sales, adoption of electric vehicles are expected to drive the market. However, with the increasing demand for lithium-ion batteries, especially in electric cars, there is a substantial growth in mineral prices, and in some cases, there is a shortage of mineral supply, which is likely to act as a restraint for the market growth during the forecast period.

Key Highlights

• The increasing adoption of electric vehicles is likely to be one of the significant drivers for market growth during the forecast period.
• The Japanese government has taken several steps to increase the adoption of renewable energy and electric vehicles by 2030. The government aims to achieve 22-24% of the country’s electricity production from renewables. Such steps by the government are likely to create ample opportunity for the market to grow during the upcoming years.
• With significant growth in passenger vehicle and trucks sales in 2019, SLI batteries is likely to witness significant growth.

Key Market Trends

Increasing Adoption of Electric Vehicles to Drive the Market

• Electric vehicles use a lithium-ion battery to power the traction motors installed on a vehicle. Prior to the uses of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles (EVs), it was majorly used by the consumer electronic sector.
• With several advantages over the conventional or internal combustion engines, the EV doesn’t emit any harmful gases like CO2, NOx, or any other greenhouse gases. Due to this advantage, many countries are encouraging the use of EVs by introducing subsidies and government programs.
• The declining prices of the lithium-ion battery is one of the major drivers of EV adoption. During 2019, the cost of lithium-ion battery pack reduced to USD 156 per KWh from USD 663 per KWh in 2013. A decreasing lithium-ion battery price has reduced the overall price of EV as the battery pack accounts for more than 30% of the EV cost, making it affordable to purchase for the end-consumers.
• In 2019, Japan had an EV sales of around 38,900, which include both battery electric vehicles (BEV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV). With the government's plan to have 100% EVs by the year 2050, it is expected to have signifiacnt growth in EV population per year, which is expected to have a positive impact on the battery market growth during the forecast period.

SLI Battery to Witness Significant Growth

• Like any other country, the automobile sector in Japan is growing significantly. With the growing human population and industries, automobiles grew over the years, and in 2019, it has a total population of about 5.2 million.
• Automobile uses a battery as a secondary power unit, to power its components or supports the engine while cranking. Lead-acid batteries and Nickel metal-hydride batteries are primarily used in conventional automobiles, while lithium-ion batteries are used in electric vehicles.
• With the outbreak of COVID-19 in Q1, 2020, the global vehicle demand declined significantly during May 2020. Global light vehicle sales fell by 33.8% in May 2020 from 7.5 million a year ago.
• Though Japan has got hold of COVID-19 situation to a certain extent, the impact is expected to remain in the automobile sector until a year, with travel restrictions on public transport.
• During 2019, trucks and buses witness a growth of around 1.5% over 2018, to 881,000 units. With an increase in the manufacturing and construction sector, the vehicular segment is expected to have growth in sales, post COVID-19 scenario, which is likely to impact the growth of the battery market in Japan positively.

Competitive Landscape

The Japan battery market is moderately fragmented. Some of the major players in the market include Panasonic Corporation, Maxell Holdings Ltd, GS Yuasa International Ltd, NGK Insulators Ltd., Toshiba Corporation, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd, LG Chem Ltd, EEMB Battery, B & B Battery Co. Ltd, and Furukawa Battery Co. Ltd.

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