Consumer batteries: Mainly used in mobile phones, laptops, smart wearable devices, power tools and other fields. In 2023, global consumer lithium battery shipments will reach 113.2 GWh, a year-on-year decline of 0.9%.
Emerging consumer electronics and AI technology: Emerging fields such as power tools, electric two-wheelers, and drones are in a stage of rapid development. At the same time, with the global AI trend, such as chat GPT, many manufacturers such as Intel, Qualcomm, and Lenovo are deploying AI PCs and AI phones.
3C consumer batteries: These are mainly divided into lithium cobalt oxide, lithium manganese oxide, lithium iron phosphate, ternary materials, etc. The production process of consumer lithium batteries mainly includes two types: winding and laminated. Among them, laminated batteries have outstanding advantages in terms of energy density, fast charging, and battery life.
This article describes the current situation of the consumer lithium battery industry, the main application scenarios of consumer lithium batteries, the consumer lithium battery industry chain, and the main participants in the consumer lithium battery industry. Next, let’s open the door to the world of consumer lithium batteries together.
Current status of consumer lithium battery industry
Main types of consumer batteries
Consumer batteries are capacity batteries made of material systems such as lithium nickel cobalt manganese oxide and lithium manganese oxide, represented by 3C products (computer, communication, consumer electronics). They are portable power sources designed for consumer electronic devices. Consumer batteries have the characteristics of high specific energy, low internal resistance, low self-discharge, and high safety performance. Currently, consumer batteries are mainly used in laptops, tablets, smartphones, smart wearable devices, power tools, electric two-wheelers, and other fields. Consumer batteries are usually divided into disposable (primary) and rechargeable (secondary) batteries, among which lithium secondary batteries are the mainstream products of consumer batteries.
Primary batteries | Secondary battery | |
Features | Can generate current, but cannot be recycled | Can be charged and discharged multiple times for recycling |
Quality to volume ratio | Big | Small |
Internal resistance | Big | Small |
High current discharge performance | Bad | Good |
Environmental friendliness | Must be discarded after use, polluting the environment | Must be discarded after use, polluting the environment |
Three packaging forms for consumer batteries
Lithium-ion batteries can be divided into cylindrical, prismatic, and polymer soft lithium batteries according to their packaging forms. Button and special-shaped batteries also have a market to meet the needs of different terminal consumer electronics products. Cylindrical lithium batteries have a large diameter, which limits the thickness of the end consumer electronics product; the appearance design of prismatic lithium batteries is relatively fixed, and it isn’t easy to make them thinner. Therefore, these two types of lithium batteries are difficult to meet the requirements of some consumer electronics products for thin and light batteries with variable sizes. Polymer soft package lithium batteries use aluminum-plastic film as the shell, which is light in weight, safe, and has a flexible appearance design and high energy density. They are more suitable for consumer electronics products requiring thin, light batteries with variable sizes and safety.
Item | Prismatic cell | Round cell | Soft-pack battery |
Housing | Steel or aluminum case | Steel or aluminum shell | Aluminum-plastic film |
Advantages | Low internal resistance; simple PACK process; large individual capacity | Mature production process, high yield, high consistency, high safety; wide range of applications, high energy density per unit | Thin, light, and low internal resistance; high energy density of PACK module; good safety performance, not prone to explosion; flexible design, variable shape |
Disadvantages | Poor consistency, low degree of standardization, high safety control requirements | High cost of PACK modules; high requirements for battery connection and management | Poor mechanical strength; high manufacturing cost |
Major battery companies | CATL, BYD, Samsung SDI, China Innovation Aviation, Guoxuan Hi-Tech | Panasonic, LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI, BAK Battery | Farasis Energy, Sunwoda, Zhuhai Guanyu, EVE Energy |
Major application areas | Passenger cars, commercial vehicles, energy storage | Passenger cars, power tools, electric bicycles, logistics vehicles, smart homes, energy storage | 3C digital products, passenger cars, energy storage |
Polymer soft pack consumer lithium battery market
- From 2017 to 2021, the shipment of polymer soft package lithium batteries will continue to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 16.3%, benefiting from the significant growth in shipments of traditional applications such as smartphones and laptops, as well as the rapid increase in shipments of emerging applications such as TWS headphones, drones, and electronic cigarettes.
- From 2022 to 2023, the shipment of polymer soft package lithium batteries will decline slightly with the decline in demand for applications such as smartphones and laptops. According to EVTank statistics for 2023, the global shipment of polymer soft-pack lithium batteries will be 5.48 billion units, a year-on-year decrease of 2.6%. Coupled with the decline in the price of lithium batteries, the market size of the entire industry is expected to decline by 11.6% year-on-year in 2023. Smartphones and laptops will remain the two main application markets for polymer soft-pack lithium batteries, accounting for nearly 50% in 2023.
TWS button lithium battery
Button batteries are divided into hard-shell button batteries and soft-packed button batteries. Hard-shell button batteries use a laminated process for the internal electrode, and are packaged in steel or aluminum shells; soft-packed button batteries use a winding process and are packaged in aluminum-plastic film. They are mainly used in various products such as Bluetooth headsets, sleep headsets, and wearable devices.
Brand | Model | Type | Battery parameters | Applicable products |
Varta | A2729 | Button cell in steel casing | 49.7mAh/0.182Wh 3.66V | Apple AirPods 2 (USB-C) |
EVE Energy | ICB1040 E4 | Button cell in steel casing | 35mAh/0.13Wh 3.7V | Haylou GT7 true wireless headphones |
ICB1045 E4H | Button cell in steel casing | 40mAh/0.148Wh 3.7V | Little Genius E3 headphones | |
CB1154 | Button cell in steel casing | 54mAh/0.208Wh 3.85V | final ZE8000 true wireless noise-canceling headphones | |
GF Xinyu Ganfeng | 105530A | Earphone in soft case with button | 0.103Wh 3.85V | OPPO Enco Air3 true wireless headphones |
1040A | Earphone in soft case with button | 34mAh/0.13Wh 3.85V | Redmi Buds 4 true wireless headphones | |
LWN Lithiumwei | 1045N1 | Earphone in soft case with button | 35mAh/0.14Wh 3.8V | Redmi Buds 4 true wireless headphones |
VDL Zijian Electronics | VDL 103351 | Button cell in steel casing | 33mAh/0.127Wh 3.85V | Nothing Ear (2) true wireless noise-cancelling headphones |
VDL 1040H | Button cell in steel casing | 51mAh/0.196Wh 3.85V | LG TONE Free T90Q true wireless sterilizing headphones | |
115560 | Earphone in soft case with button | 0.165Wh 3.85V | OPPO Enco Free3 true wireless noise-canceling headphones |
Special-shaped lithium battery
The positive and negative ear tabs of an irregular lithium battery can be set on the same or different sides of the battery cell group, and the shape can be regular or irregular. With the increase in the size of smartphone screens and the pursuit of thinness, mobile phone manufacturers mainly use dual-cell and irregular cell solutions to make full use of the internal space of the fuselage and increase the battery capacity while keeping the overall battery volume unchanged. For example, Apple products such as the iPhone XS Max use a dual-cell structure, while the iPhone 11 Pro/iPhone 13 Pro series use a special-shaped (L-shaped) cell structure. In terms of battery capacity, the iPhone 11 Pro Max and iPhone 13 Pro Max have a battery capacity of 3969 mAh and 4352 mAh respectively, which is an increase of 8% and 18% compared to the iPhone 12 Pro Max, which uses a normal battery form.
The rise of new electronic products such as smart bracelets and smart rings has also created new requirements for battery shapes. For example, curved batteries are mainly used in smart rings, perfectly matching the shape of the ring and providing a larger battery capacity within the limited space of the battery compartment, thus better meeting the battery life requirements of smart rings.
Consumer lithium battery market size
With the maturity of technology and market saturation of electronic products such as mobile phones, the shipment of consumer lithium batteries has stabilized. According to EVTank statistics, the global shipment of consumer lithium batteries in 2023 will be 113.2 GWh, a year-on-year decrease of 0.9%, accounting for 9.41% of the total lithium battery shipment.
China’s consumer lithium battery shipments are stable. According to GGI data, China’s lithium battery shipments in 2023 will be 886 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 35%, of which digital lithium battery shipments will be 49 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 2.1%, accounting for 5.54%; in the first half of 2024, China’s lithium battery shipments will be 459 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 21%, of which digital lithium battery shipments will be 23 GWh, accounting for 5.01%.
Global Consumer Lithium Battery Market
According to data from the China Business Intelligence Network, in the global mobile phone lithium battery market in 2022, ATL, Samsung SDI, LG New Energy, BYD, and Zhuhai Guanyu will be the top 5 companies, with market shares of 37.96%, 11.12%, 9.85%, 9.31%, and 7.00%, respectively. The cumulative market share of CR5 exceeds 75%.
According to Techno Systems Research, the global market for lithium batteries for laptops and tablets in 2021 is dominated by ATL, Zhuhai Guanyu, LG Energy Solution, BYD and Samsung SDI, with market shares of 37.31%, 27.17%, 11.50%, 6.31% and 4.36% respectively. The combined market share of the top five companies is 86.65%.
Main application scenarios of consumer lithium batteries
Consumer lithium battery industry chain
The upstream of the consumer lithium battery industry chain is basic materials and equipment, including raw minerals, battery core materials (positive electrode materials, negative electrode materials, electrolytes, diaphragms, etc.) and production equipment (coating machines, mixers, liquid injection machines, stacking machines, etc.). The downstream is the application field, including mobile phones, laptops, electric two-wheelers, power tools, smart wearable devices and other products.
Laptop Battery Market
With the promotion of smartphones, tablets and other products, lithium batteries, as one of the heaviest parts of laptops, are developing in the direction of being lighter and thinner. Traditional cylindrical lithium batteries are gradually being replaced by lightweight, high-capacity soft-packaged lithium batteries.
According to Canalys data, global personal computer shipments in 2023 will be 247 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 12.9%; in the first half of 2024, global personal computer (PC) shipments will reach 120 million units, a year-on-year increase of 3.5%. In terms of market structure, in Q2 2024, the top 3 manufacturers in the global personal computer market were Lenovo, HP and Dell, with market shares of 23.4%, 21.8% and 16.0% respectively.
Tablet Battery Market
According to IDC data, global tablet shipments in 2023 will be 129 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 20.5%; global tablet shipments in the first half of 2024 will be about 65 million units, a year-on-year increase of 10.9%. China’s tablet shipments in 2023 will be 28 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 4.5%; China’s tablet shipments in the first half of 2024 will be 14 million units, a year-on-year increase of 6.5%.
In terms of market structure, the top 3 manufacturers in the global tablet market in Q2 2024 are Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi, with market shares of 35.8%, 20.1% and 7.3% respectively. The top 3 manufacturers in the Chinese tablet market are Huawei, Apple and Xiaomi, with market shares of 28.4%, 28.0% and 12.8% respectively.
Smart Wearable Device Battery Market
Smart wearable device innovation is active and widespread, and is currently mainly used in smart watches, Bluetooth headsets, smart glasses, etc. As the technology continues to mature, wearable devices have great growth potential as an important entry point for the Internet of Things.
According to IDC data, the global shipment of smart wearable devices in 2023 will be 498 million units, a year-on-year increase of 1.7%; in Q1 2024, the global shipment of smart wearable devices will be 113 million units, a year-on-year increase of 8.8%; it is estimated that the annual shipment in 2024 will reach 560 million units, and by the end of 2028, it will grow to 646 million units. In terms of market structure, the top 3 global smart wearable device manufacturers in Q1 2024 will be Apple, Xiaomi and Huawei, with market shares of 18.2%, 10.5% and 9.6% respectively.
Power Tool Battery Market
Power tools are powered by an electric motor or electromagnet, which drives the working head through a transmission mechanism. Power tools have many applications, including the machinery industry, construction landscaping, etc. The future development direction is the miniaturization, lightweight, and cordless operation of power tools. In the past, electric tools mostly used lead-acid batteries, which had problems such as poor battery life, short lifespan, and loud noise. At the same time, they produced a large amount of toxic waste when disposed of. As the cost of lithium batteries has fallen, electric tools have switched to lithium batteries, which have the advantages of long lifespan, rapid charging, and lightweight. Therefore, the penetration rate of lithium batteries in electric tools has increased significantly. At the same time, with technological improvements, the application scenarios of electric tools have gradually expanded to smart homes, portable energy storage, emergencies, and other fields, and the market has broad prospects for the future.
According to iiMedia Research, the global power tool market is expected to reach 28.85 billion US dollars by 2023, a year-on-year increase of 3.4%. It is expected to reach 35.74 billion US dollars by 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 18% over the next four years. According to Evtank, the global power tool market is expected to ship 470 million units in 2022, a year-on-year decrease of 19.3%.
Global Electric Two-Wheeler Growth
Electric two-wheelers refer to integrated personal transportation vehicles that use a battery as auxiliary energy and are equipped with a motor, controller, display instrument and other components based on a two-wheeler. Electric two-wheelers can generally be divided into three categories: electric bicycles, electric mopeds and electric motorcycles.
According to EVTank data, global shipments of electric two-wheelers reached 67.4 million units in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 4.5%, and the growth rate is slowing down.
Electric two-wheeler classification | Electric bicycles | Electric mopeds | Electric motorcycle |
Vehicle mass | ≤55kg | No requirements | No requirement |
Maximum speed | ≤25km/h | ≤50km/h | >50km/h |
Battery voltage | ≤48V | No restrictions | No limit |
Motor power | ≤400W | ≤4kW | >4kW |
Product attributes | Non-motor vehicles | Motor vehicles | Motor vehicle |
Pedal riding | Required | No | No |
Electronic vaporizer global market
An electronic atomizer, or electronic cigarette, is an atomizer powered by a rechargeable lithium battery. It is an electronic atomization device that heats the atomized mist to produce a specific odor for smokers. It can be classified according to the number of uses into open electronic cigarettes (electronic cigarettes that can be refilled with oil) and closed electronic cigarettes (disposable electronic cigarettes and refillable electronic cigarettes), of which closed electronic cigarettes are the mainstream.
According to the statistics in the World Tobacco Development Report 2023, the global e-cigarette market is expected to reach 20.88 billion US dollars by 2023; of this, open e-cigarettes will account for 36.7% or 7.66 billion US dollars, while closed e-cigarettes will account for 63.3% or 13.22 billion US dollars. Countries with e-cigarette sales exceeding $1 billion include the United States ($5.96 billion), the United Kingdom ($3.30 billion), Canada ($2.14 billion) and France ($1.26 billion).
Consumer lithium battery industry chain
Consumer lithium battery production process
The production process of consumer lithium batteries includes more than ten process steps, including mixing, coating, punching/slitting, lamination/winding, welding, liquid injection, pre-chemicalization, molding, packaging and testing, etc. There are many steps and the process is complex. In addition, the production of consumer lithium batteries involves multiple production equipment and a large number of parameter adjustment work, and has strict requirements on the dust environment, temperature and humidity of each production workshop. The entire production process is difficult to control.
Lamination process battery
With the trend towards flatness of traditional electronic products such as smartphones and laptops, and the rise of emerging electronic products such as smart wearable devices and power tools, the form of batteries is also developing towards diversification, so the choice of cell production process is particularly important.
Comparing the two production processes, laminated batteries have outstanding advantages in terms of energy density, fast charging, and battery life. Therefore, laminated batteries are expected to become one of the mainstream choices for smart consumer electronics in the future. Laminated lithium batteries can be made into a variety of shapes due to the flexibility of the electrode size. At the same time, the laminated structure has relatively higher energy density and is more suitable for the production of small, irregularly shaped batteries and ultra-thin batteries. However, the laminated process is more difficult than the winding process, and it is more difficult to ensure a high yield. Therefore, mastering the high-precision laminated process and building a laminated production line has become an important factor for consumer lithium battery manufacturers to innovate their product lines and expand downstream customers.
Comparison of winding and lamination processes
Wound battery | Laminated battery | |
Energy density | Low. There is a “C” angle, low space utilization, and low energy density. | High. High space utilization high energy density. |
Structural stability | Low. There is a “C” angle, the internal reaction rate of charge and discharge is uneven, and the stability is poor. | Good. The reaction interface is uniform, the level sheet and the diaphragm are in good contact, and the stability is good. |
Quick charging performance | Poor. | High. The multi-level sheet is connected in parallel, the internal resistance is low, the high current charging and discharging can be completed quickly, and the battery rate performance is high. |
Safety | Poor. Potential problems such as powder shedding, sheet expansion, and burrs are prone to occur at the bend. | Good. There is no core corner, the stress distribution is more consistent, and the interface remains flat and stable. |
Cycle life | Short. It is easy to deform in the later stage, affecting the battery life. | Long. The internal resistance is low, which relieves the battery’s heating and prolongs the service life. |
Production efficiency | High. High degree of automation and high yield rate. | Low. The burr problem is prominent. |
Investment cost | Low. Mature equipment and low investment cost. | High. The process is difficult, and the equipment cost is high. |
3C consumer batteries mainly use lithium cobalt oxide + soft pack solutions
Lithium-ion batteries are mainly classified according to their positive electrode materials, including lithium cobalt oxide, lithium manganese oxide, lithium iron phosphate, ternary material batteries, etc. Lithium cobalt oxide has the advantages of high capacity, high compacted density, and stable cycle performance. The higher the compacted density, the smaller the volume of the battery made from the same mass, which is more convenient to carry. Therefore, lithium cobalt oxide cathode materials are mostly used in products such as mobile phones and laptops.
The recovery of the consumer electronics industry in 2024 will drive an increase in the production of lithium cobalt oxide. In 2024H1, the shipment volume of lithium cobalt oxide will reach 45,000 tons, a year-on-year increase of 28.6%.
Project | Ternary materials (NCM) | Lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) | Lithium manganate (LMO) | Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) |
Crystal structure | Layered | Layered | Spinel | Olivine structure |
Theoretical specific capacity (mAh/g) | 273-285 | 274 | 148 | 170 |
Actual specific capacity (mAh/g) | 155-220 | 135-150 | 100-120 | 130-140 |
Pressing density (g/cm3) | 3.40-3.80 | 3.60-4.20 | 2.80-3.20 | 2.20-2.60 |
Number of cycles (times) | 800-2000 | 500-1000 | 500-2000 | 2000-6000 |
Voltage range (v) | 2.8-4.5 | 3.0-4.5 | 3.0-4.3 | 3.2-4.7 |
Advantages | High energy density, relatively low cost | High tap density, high energy density, high operating voltage | Good thermal stability, low material cost, good safety | Excellent thermal stability, low material cost, good safety, long cycle life |
Disadvantages | High temperature prone to inflation, poor circulation, poor safety | High material cost, poor thermal stability | Low energy density, poor high temperature cycle performance | Low energy density, poor low temperature performance |
Main application areas | 3C electronic products, power tools, electric bicycles, electric vehicles and energy storage | 3C electronic products | Electric bicycles, electric tools | Commercial buses and energy storage |
Gross profit of consumer battery companies
Cobalt oxide, which accounts for the highest proportion of the cost of consumer lithium batteries, has entered a downward cycle since April 2022, when the price reached a high of nearly 600,000 yuan/ton. On September 11, 2024, the price had fallen to 139,000 yuan/ton. The cost of consumer lithium batteries has fallen rapidly, and the gross profit margins of some listed companies in the industry that mainly produce cells have rebounded to a certain extent.
Future Trends of Consumer Batteries
In 2022, due to the decline in demand in the downstream consumer markets for mobile phones, laptops, etc., the sales of most consumer battery companies such as Sunwoda and Keheng will decline year-on-year. In 2023, as consumer market demand picks up, the consumer battery market will follow suit; 2 024 years with chat GPT and other AI era, Intel, Qualcomm, Lenovo, Xiaomi and many other well-known manufacturers quickly layout AI mobile phone, AIPC, mobile phones and laptops are expected to usher in a new round of upgrading boom, driving the rapid increase in demand for consumer batteries.
Sunwoda’s consumer battery production capacity is steadily increasing, reaching 621 million units in 2023, with a compound annual growth rate of 8.6% over the next five years. Keheng’s consumer battery production capacity is rapidly increasing, reaching 645 million units in 2023, with a compound annual growth rate of 28.5% over the next five years.
Major players in consumer lithium batteries
Keheng: Consumer lithium batteries and mild hybrid batteries are growing
Founded in 2009, Keheng is one of the world’s leading suppliers of consumer polymer lithium soft packaging batteries and energy storage batteries, with two major production bases in Dongguan and Anhui.
Xinwanda
Established in 1997, Sunwoda has been deeply involved in the field of lithium batteries. Its main business includes 3C consumer batteries, power batteries, energy storage systems, etc. The company currently has multiple manufacturing bases in Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shandong, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Hubei and other provinces in China, as well as in India, Vietnam, Hungary, Morocco and other countries.
3C consumer batteries are the company’s traditional core business, with an excellent customer structure. Key customers for mobile phone batteries include Apple, Huawei, OPPO, vivo, and Xiaomi, while laptop customers include Huawei, Lenovo, Dell, and HP. The company ranks first in the world in terms of lithium battery shipments for smartphones. At the same time, the company is actively expanding its 3C lithium battery cell business, which is expected to increase profitability by increasing the self-supply rate of cells.
EVE Energy
EVE Energy was established in 2001, and its main business includes consumer batteries, power batteries, and energy storage batteries.
The company’s consumer batteries are mainly divided into three categories: lithium primary batteries, small lithium batteries, and cylindrical batteries. The company’s primary lithium batteries primarily include lithium sub-batteries and manganese batteries, and their applications cover smart metering, automotive electronics, smart security, etc. Lithium primary batteries’ sales and export volume have ranked first for eight consecutive years. The company’s small lithium batteries mainly include small soft-packaged batteries and button batteries, and downstream fields include electronic atomizers, wearable devices, TWS headphones, etc., with small lithium batteries ranking among the top in many market segments; cylindrical consumer lithium batteries are used in power tools, electric two-wheelers, portable energy storage, etc., and their market share continues to increase.
Blue Lithium Core
Weilan Lithium Battery is mainly engaged in three major businesses: lithium batteries, LED chips, and metal logistics and distribution. Its wholly-owned subsidiary Jiangsu Tianpeng Power has 18 years of research and development and manufacturing experience in the field of cylindrical lithium batteries, and has three large-scale production bases, forming a lithium battery technology and product system with NCM, NCA and LFP. The company’s lithium battery products are mainly used in power tools, garden tools, smart home, smart travel and other fields, and are actively expanding into emerging fields such as BBU (backup power), eVTOL, and AI robots. According to Techno Systems Research data, in Q1 2024, Tianpeng Power’s market share of lithium battery cores for power tools ranked second in the world.
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