Correction: The 0.51 in the excerpt should be in RMB, which was previously incorrectly written in USD.
Pouch-type ternary power battery cells saw the biggest drop, falling 7.3 percent to RMB 0.51 per Wh in January, TrendForce said.
(Image credit: CnEVPost)
The global lithium battery market remained sluggish in January, with the average price of all types of power battery cell products continuing to fall in China, market research firm TrendForce said in a report today.
Pouch-type automotive ternary power battery cells fell the most, dropping 7.3 percent to RMB 0.51 yuan ($0.071) per Wh in January, TrendForce said, adding that the average price is expected to remain on the downside in February.
The average price of prismatic ternary battery cells fell 5.9 percent from a year earlier to RMB 0.48 per Wh in January.
Prismatic lithium iron phosphate power battery cells in January fell 4.4 percent to RMB 0.43 per Wh.
Currently lithium prices stabilized, but the electric vehicle market growth in 2024 may slow down, such as Tesla has mentioned in its fourth-quarter earnings meeting that its 2024 sales growth will be reduced, the report noted.
In the face of intensifying market competition, coupled with buyers' quest to reduce costs, Chinese battery suppliers will choose to scale back costs, pushing the price of power battery cells to the RMB 0.3/Wh level, TrendForce said.
This will make it difficult for power battery cell makers who are at a disadvantage in obtaining upstream raw materials, TrendForce said, adding that the overall average cell market price is expected to remain downward in the first quarter.
In terms of energy storage cells, there was no significant fluctuation in market demand as the Chinese New Year approaches, according to the report.
Prices of energy storage batteries remained relatively stable, falling 2.2 percent to RMB 0.44/Wh in January.
On January 16, local media outlet 36kr reported that the price war for power batteries is intensifying, with CATL and BYD, the world's two largest battery makers, pushing battery costs down further.
Power batteries have gone from a state of tight supply to oversupply in a year's time, and prices are now gradually falling toward RMB 0.3/Wh, 36kr's report said.
($1 = RMB 7.1795)
Battery price war: CATL, BYD pushing battery costs down further
