Nickel Batteries to Grow in Industrial and Automotive Applications

According to a report by Frost & Sullivan, the growth of nickel batteries will likely be more pronounced in the industrial and automotive application segments in the next five to seven years. The same report from Frost & Sullivan also claims this market earned revenues of $1.98 billion in 2006 and estimates this to reach $2.24 billion in 2013.

Emerging automotive applications such as electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) offer strong growth potential for nickel batteries," notes Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Suba Arunkumar. "NiMH chemistry, being a safe, reliable and proven technology, is widely used for HEVs and EVs. Moreover, NiMH batteries are inexpensive and are also stable at higher temperatures."

"But the volatile price of raw materials along with severe competition in a declining market poses challenges for nickel battery manufacturers," says Arunkumar. "This has ensured that most major manufacturers are concentrated in a specific geographic location."