aluminium show |The Potential Market of Aluminum Consumption - Battery Foils

The primary products of the aluminum processing and manufacturing industry are aluminum profiles and aluminum sheet, strip, and foil. Aluminum sheet, strip, and foil are thin products obtained from aluminum ingots through rolling (rolling deformation) processes and are categorized based on their thickness into aluminum sheet and strip (≥0.2mm) and aluminum foil (<0.2mm).

Aluminum foil possesses excellent properties such as moisture resistance, airtightness, and conductivity, and it is widely used in various fields including green packaging, household products, appliances, lithium batteries, transportation, and architectural decoration. Aluminum foil can be categorized based on downstream applications into packaging foils, container foils, air conditioning foils, electronic foils, and battery foils, with packaging and container foils, as well as air conditioning foils, dominating the main aluminum foil market. In July 2023, the monthly production of aluminum sheet, strip, and foil reached 1.1356 million tons, and the installed capacity has reached 20.67 million tons.

Since 2022, the production capacity and output of battery foils have seen a significant surge. According to data from the aluminium show, the annual growth rate of battery foil production in that year reached 70%. In 2023, the proportion of new aluminum sheet, strip, and foil production capacity dedicated to battery foils reached 60%, while within the new energy vehicle projects, the share of battery foil production capacity reached an impressive 71%. The strong demand for battery foils has substantially increased the profit margins and enthusiasm of manufacturers.

In the realm of power batteries, driven by the rapid development of new energy vehicles, there is a stable growth outlook for aluminum foil demand in battery applications. It is expected that next year, the demand for aluminum foils in power battery applications will reach 330,000 tons. In the context of "dual carbon" and 5G development, energy storage batteries have promising prospects, with an estimated demand for aluminum foils in energy storage battery applications reaching 66,000 tons by 2024 and 31,000 tons by 2025.

Overall, with the fundamental support from power batteries, the demand for battery aluminum foils is expected to experience high growth driven by the two catalysts of energy storage batteries and sodium-ion batteries. In terms of the market structure, the demand for lithium-ion battery foils still dominates. However, considering the current progress in sodium-ion battery production, our assumption regarding the penetration rate of sodium-ion batteries is somewhat conservative. It is worth noting that when sodium-ion batteries reach the point of commercial production and the market fully appreciates their performance advantages, the demand may exceed expectations.