Global demand for automotive batteries is forecast to rise 13 percent per year to $54.1 billion in 2022, expanding to 38 percent of total sales. Rising manufacturing and use of motor vehicles worldwide will spur sales growth, according to new research from The Freedonia Group.
The hybrid electric vehicle segment will more than quadruple in size as these vehicles increasingly penetrate global markets. Electric vehicles, which use more expensive batteries than hybrids, will post particularly strong growth, boosting overall market value, the Cleveland-based research firm says. While falling prices for lithium-ion batteries (on a kWh basis) will be a major contributor to growth for HEVs, a shift toward batteries with higher capacities will boost prices on a unit basis and contribute to the expanding market size.
The automotive market is the largest outlet for battery sales worldwide, accounting for 34 percent of demand in 2017. The universal need for aftermarket batteries creates a massive global market for these products and provides a stabilizing influence in comparison to the more volatile OEM segment. Lead-acid batteries account for the vast majority of automotive market demand, but lithium-ion and nickel-based types have steadily become increasingly prevalent with the commercialization of HEVs.
Global demand for batteries in all outlets is forecast to rise 9.8 percent per year to $141 billion in 2022, improving on the 2017-‘22 performance. According to analyst The Freedonia Group’s Elliott Woo, “Growth prospects vary significantly among product and market segments, and suppliers will need to carefully tailor their strategies to the differing needs of target areas.”
These and other trends are presented in Global Batteries, 11th Edition, a new study from The Freedonia Group. More information about this study can be found here.
