Electric Bus Sector to Dominate Battery Market

According to a recent report from IDTechEx,the electric bus (e-bus) market is growing at 20% per year in unit sales, which is “a game changer for the battery market as electric buses require large-sized batteries ranging from 74 kWh (fast charging e-bus) to over 300 kWh (slow charging e-bus).”

As a result, the research house forecasts that the e-bus battery market will overtake the consumer electronics sector by 2020.

From a global perspective, Dr Victoria Adesanya-Aworinde, Technology Analyst, IDTechEx, notes that “China is currently the world leader in electric buses since 97% and 75% of electric buses and their batteries are produced in the country, respectively. China is seeking to dominate the battery market by retaining the entire value chain of electric vehicles and batteries within the country.”

The analyst further believes:” This smells of short-term protectionism since lithium iron phosphate (LFP) variant is the most common chemistry manufactured in China and used in Chinese e-buses. It is uncertain whether this intervention by the Chinese government will ultimately be upheld but what is certain is that it at least acts as a short-term break on the market of non-LFP batteries.”

Much is at stake, especially safety — given the large-sized batteries required for electric buses.

More information can be found in the IDTechEx Research report “Lithium-ion Batteries for Electric Buses 2016-2026”.

Category: Green