Putailai China to Invest $823M in Boosting Battery Separator Film Production

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Putailai New Energy Technology, a leading global manufacturer of lithium battery separators, has announced plans to invest approximately $823 million to expand its separator film production capacity and address current bottlenecks.
The company will construct 16 production lines for battery separator films in Qionglai, located in China’s southwestern Sichuan province. This expansion aims to achieve a combined annual output of 7.2 billion square meters. The development will proceed in two phases.

In the first phase, eight production lines will be established at the company’s existing facility, with a total capacity of 3.2 billion square meters per year. These lines are scheduled to begin trial production next year. The remaining eight lines will be built on newly acquired land during the second phase, with plans for operational status by the first quarter of 2028.

Separator films are key components of lithium batteries, serving as semi-finished products that, once coated with active chemicals, become the final separators integrated into batteries.
The company currently stands as the world’s top supplier of coated films for lithium batteries, processing 10.9 billion square meters last year—accounting for roughly 35% of the global market. As of the end of 2025, its annual capacity for coated films was 14 billion square meters, while the capacity for base films was only 2.1 billion square meters.

This new project aims to increase the company’s self-sufficiency in base films, streamlining integrated production to better meet rising demand and boost profitability.
The pace of capacity expansion is accelerating among lithium battery separator suppliers amid strong downstream demand. Earlier this month, a regional producer announced plans to co-develop a joint venture in Sichuan’s Zigong, with an annual capacity of 5 billion square meters. Additionally, another manufacturer revealed plans to build eight production lines in Guangzhou, with a total annual capacity of 2.4 billion square meters.

Shares of the company closed down 2.2% at CNY31.72 (approximately USD4.66) each on the Shanghai stock exchange today, reflecting a broader decline across China’s stock markets.