The lithium ion battery space is heating up worldwide as the race to build the next generation of electric vehicles, which rely on these batteries, heats up. Suppliers to this space - in copper and copper components, as well as carbon components - are set to see growth, as the industry builds more mature, accessible products.
Himadri Chemicals has been gaining traction among analysts over recent moves to supply the lithium ion battery industry. HSCL - currently a market leader in the coal tar pitch space with a 70% market share - has focused typically on specialty chemicals that are used in the electronics, paints and construction space.
HSCL has now turned to the Advanced Carbon Material space. This area, according to analysts is growing rapidly - the material is now being used for nodes in lithium ion batteries. Lithium ion batteries are the key energy source for mobile phones, laptops and other battery electronic devices. They are also seeing a new boom thanks to the electric vehicle segment, where lithium battery cars are the focus of innovation and investment. The take on HSCL is that the company is set to see a significant uptake for its new product. The company has received approvals for production, and is now planning to increase the production capacity of advance carbon material from 600 tpa to 3,000 tpa by FY19.