NEWS & ANALYSIS
Panasonic starts EV battery production at Dalian plant

London, 14 March (Argus) — Japanese electronics manufacturer Panasonic has begun mass production and shipping of lithium battery modules for electric vehicles (EV) from its new plant in Dalian, China.

The facility, a joint venture with local firm Dalian Levear Electric, manufactures prismatic-type automotive lithium-ion batteries for the Chinese and North American markets. Prismatic batteries are thinner than conventional cylindrical batteries, allowing them to be layered into larger-format cells for EVs. Panasonic expects shipments and the number of destinations to increase in line with rising demand for EVs.

The move comes as part of a global expansion of Panasonic's lithium-ion battery business. The company announced in September last year that it had installed technology to allow it to produce lithium-ion batteries at a factory in Himeji, Japan, that manufactures LCD display panels. Battery production on the site is expected to begin in 2020.

Panasonic already operates a battery cell production facility at car manufacturer Tesla's Gigafactory site in Nevada, US. But the Dalian site is not affiliated with Tesla and will focus on supplying the growing Chinese EV market.

Panasonic is not the only company looking to capitalise on growing Asia-Pacific demand for EVs. German automaker Daimler said today that its Mercedes-Benz division will begin lithium-ion battery production in Thailand in collaboration with local partner Thonburi Automotive Assembly Plant (TAAP).

The two companies will jointly invest more than €100mn ($124mn) in expanding TAAP's car plant in Bangkok and installing a new battery assembly plant on the site. This is part of Daimler's planned global network of six factories on three continents, aimed at meeting increasing market demand. Daimler aims to electrify every Mercedes-Benz car model by 2022.

This analysis was published in Argus Metals International.


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