Ube Industries Ltd. plans to sharply increase production of electrolytes for lithium ion batteries by expanding a domestic plant and building a new facility in Spain, company sources said Tuesday.
- Ube will double production capacity at this factory in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture.
The firm anticipates growing demand worldwide for components and materials used in lithium ion batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles. Their market for automotive use is expected to soar 50-fold between 2010 and 2016 to more than 2 trillion yen, according to the Institute of Information Technology.
Ube is the world's second-ranked electrolyte producer, with a market share of slightly more than 20%. It aims to take back the title of industry leader, which it lost to a South Korean supplier a few years ago.
The plan is to spend about 1.5 billion yen to double output capacity at its factory in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, to 10,000 tons a year. Right now, the bulk of the electrolytes made there go into batteries that power mobile phones and other nonautomotive products. The additional output will be sold mainly for automobile batteries.
The firm will also set up a development center for battery materials by next month. And in April, it will launch a pilot facility for electrolyte production at its existing factory in Castellon. Samples will be shipped to battery manufacturers in the U.S. and Europe. Ube aims to build a large factory in the eastern Spanish city as demand expands.
Electrolytes are a core component of lithium ion batteries, along with electrodes and separators. Ube has strength in electrolytes that can extend battery life and keep batteries from catching fire. Since automotive batteries have particularly stringent safety requirements, Ube hopes that its electrolytes will be competitive in this application.
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