Panasonics new flagship Lithium-Ion Battery Plant in Japan to produce 300 million batteries per year

Panasonic celebrated today the completion of its new lithium-ion battery production facility in Suminoe, Osaka City, at a ceremony held on the premises. The Panasonic Suminoe Factory will now begin mass production of battery cells this April starting with an initial capacity of 10 million units per month during the first year of operations. Panasonic plans to gradually increase the production capacity up to 25 million per month (300 million units per year) during the first phase, taking into consideration market conditions. The factory will manufacture mainly Panasonic’s high-capacity lithium-ion batteries, featuring its unique nickel-based positive electrodes, to meet the ever-growing demands for higher-capacity batteries. The Panasonic Suminoe Factory has been designed with a “safe, secure, and eco-conscious factory” concept. It offers integrated manufacturing from electrode fabrication to battery cell production, using advanced high-efficiency production equipment to achieve high productivity with reduced production lead times.

Lithium-ion batteries are used not only in mobile devices such as notebook computers and mobile phones, but also for eco-friendly cars, backup power source and household energy storage systems that consist of solar panels and fuel cells. Global demand for lithium-ion batteries is expected to reach 3.2 trillion yen, more than five times the current level, by the fiscal year ending March 2019.