Chinese Copper Foil Market Sees Shift Towards Thinner, More Efficient Production
The Chinese power battery market has seen significant growth in recent months, reaching 410.2 GWh in the first seven months of 2026, up 15.4% year on year. This expansion is closely linked to China's expanding new energy vehicle (NEV) market, with NEV sales reaching 9.007 million units in the first seven months of 2026, up 9.6% year on year.
The rising demand for vehicles and batteries has increased focus on copper foil, a key battery component that affects cost, performance, and supply stability. Hailiang New Energy Materials Co., Ltd. in Lanzhou New Area has been at the forefront of this trend, producing copper foil with an annual capacity of over 100,000 tons.
The company's production process requires stable and sufficient power supply, which is why they chose Lanzhou New Area for their operations. Pan Zhengze, Dean of the New Energy Materials Research Institute at Gansu Hailiang New Energy Materials, stated that producing one metric ton of electrolytic copper foil requires about 8,500 to 9,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity.
The company has also invested in developing thinner copper foil, with a current capability to produce foil as thin as 2.5 microns. This move is not solely driven by technical specifications but also aims to reduce the amount of copper used in each battery, which can help lower material costs given rising copper prices.