In 2024, the lithium battery separator industry underwent profound adjustments. According to the "White Paper on the Development of China's Lithium-ion Battery Separator Industry (2025)" jointly released by research institutions EVTank, EV Economics Research Institute, and China Battery Industry Research Institute, in 2024, China's lithium-ion battery separator shipments increased by 28.6% YoY, reaching 22.75 billion m², accounting for a 79.4% market share in the global market. Among them, shipments of wet-process separators reached 17.49 billion m², and shipments of dry-process separators reached 5.26 billion m².
In terms of shipments, the top 10 companies in China's lithium battery separator shipments in 2024 were Semcorp, Shenzhen Senior Technology Material, Gellec, Sinoma Science & Technology, Huiqiang New Materials, Zhongxing New Materials, Jiangsu Hoshion, Lanketu, PTL Zhuoqin, and Beixing New Materials.
In 2024, the shipment threshold for the top 10 companies in China's lithium battery separator shipments increased from 300 million m² in 2023 to 400 million m² in 2024. However, competition in the entire lithium battery separator industry remained fierce, with overall capacity still in a state of surplus, and the performance of companies in the separator sector generally under pressure.
Among the aforementioned top 10 companies, the publicly listed firms are Semcorp, Shenzhen Senior Technology Material, Sinoma Science & Technology, and PTL. Their latest performance is as follows:
Semcorp: First annual loss since listing
Semcorp's operating revenue in 2024 was 10.16 billion yuan, down 15.6% YoY; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was a loss of 556 million yuan, down 122% YoY, marking the first annual loss since its listing.
In 2024, Semcorp's revenue from the lithium battery separator business was 8.255 billion yuan (accounting for 99.01% of operating revenue), down 18.13% YoY.
In 2024, Semcorp's shipments of lithium battery separator products increased significantly, reaching 8.825 billion m², up 42.33% YoY. Despite the overall decline in operating revenue, the company still maintained a good market position. According to EVTank's statistics, as of the end of 2024, the company's market share had ranked first in the market for seven consecutive years.
In Q1 2025, Semcorp's operating revenue was 2.73 billion yuan, up 17.2% YoY; net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 25.99 million yuan, down 83.6% YoY.
In terms of customers, Semcorp has now integrated into the supply chain systems of the vast majority of mainstream lithium battery producers globally, including overseas lithium battery production giants such as Panasonic, LGES, French ACC, UltiumCells, a major overseas automaker, as well as over 50 domestic and overseas lithium battery enterprises such as CATL, EVE, CALB, BYD, Gotion High-tech, Farasis Energy, and Lishen.
Shenzhen Senior Technology Material: Both Production and Sales of Separators Increase by Over 55%
In 2024, Shenzhen Senior Technology Material's operating revenue reached 3.54 billion yuan, up 17.5% YoY; its net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 364 million yuan, down 36.9% YoY.
Among them, in 2024, the company's revenue from the lithium battery separator business was 3.506 billion yuan (accounting for 81.22% of operating revenue), up 17.58% YoY.
In 2024, the production and sales of Shenzhen Senior Technology Material's lithium battery separators continued to grow, with sales volume reaching 39,859.458 million m², up 57.64% YoY, and production volume reaching 40,459.426 million m², up 56.25% YoY.
In Q1 2025, Shenzhen Senior Technology Material's operating revenue was 889 million yuan, up 24.4% YoY; its net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 46.71 million yuan, down 56.4% YoY.
In terms of customers, in the domestic market, Shenzhen Senior Technology Material's main customers cover multiple well-known lithium-ion battery producers such as CATL, BYD, CALB, Gotion High-tech, Sunwoda, SVOLT Energy Technology, EVE, and Tianjin Lishen. In the international market, the company's products are supplied in bulk to first-tier producers such as LG Chem, Samsung SDI, Envision AESC, NORTHVOLT, Murata, and SAFT, and it has established business cooperation relationships with multiple large lithium-ion battery producers.
Sinoma Science & Technology: Coated Separator Sales Increase by 30.4% YoY
In 2024, Sinoma Science & Technology's operating revenue was 23.98 billion yuan, down 7.4% YoY; its net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 892 million yuan, down 59.9% YoY.
Among them, in 2024, the company's revenue from the lithium battery separator business was 1.468 billion yuan (accounting for 5.58% of operating revenue), down 39.76% YoY.
In 2024, Sinoma Science & Technology's sales volume of lithium battery separators reached 1.9 billion m², up 9.4% YoY; the sales volume of coated separators of Sinoma Lithium Film increased by 30.4% YoY, and its proportion increased by 6% YoY.
In Q1 2025, Sinoma Science & Technology achieved a total operating revenue of 5.506 billion yuan, up 24.26% YoY; its net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 362 million yuan, up 68.34% YoY.
Currently, Sinoma Lithium Film has completed the construction of 7 production sites, forming a regional layout of six 1-billion-m²-level areas, and is actively promoting the preliminary work of overseas investment layout. The company's main customers include BYD, CATL, EVE, etc.
PTL: Processing Volume of Coated Separators Exceeds 7.003 Billion m²
In 2024, PTL achieved a total operating revenue of 13.448 billion yuan, down 12.33% YoY; its net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 1.191 billion yuan, down 37.72% YoY.
In 2024, PTL generated revenue of RMB 13.361 billion from lithium battery materials and equipment, representing a 12.13% decrease YoY.
In 2024, PTL's sales of base films reached 570 million m², up 32.85% YoY. By the end of 2024, the company had formed an annual production capacity of 700 million m² for base films.
Additionally, in 2024, PTL's coating and processing business achieved a total processing volume (sales) of 7.003 billion m² for the year. Against the backdrop of intensifying competition in the industry, the company continued to maintain a leading market share in its coating separator processing business.
In Q1 2025, PTL achieved a total operating revenue of RMB 3.215 billion, up 5.96% YoY, and a net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company of RMB 488 million, up 9.64% YoY.
In terms of customers, PTL has maintained long-term and good cooperative relationships with mainstream battery manufacturers or automakers such as CATL, LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI, ATL, BYD, CALB, REPT Battero, Sunwoda, CosMX Battery, EVE, Ganfeng Lithium, Yaoning Technology, Geely Auto, and the Volkswagen Group.
Conclusion:From the performance of top-tier enterprises, it can be seen that separator companies generally face downward pressure on prices and overcapacity. As mentioned by Enjie Technology in its 2024 annual report: Due to the temporary slowdown in the growth rate of power lithium batteries, fierce competition in the downstream battery industry has led to increased efforts to control procurement costs for upstream raw materials, including separator products. Meanwhile, the concentrated release of production capacity in the lithium battery separator industry in recent years has resulted in intense competition in the separator market, leading to a decline in separator product prices and pressure on the profitability of the entire industry.
To boost performance, separator companies have been expanding overseas, strengthening cost control, and promoting gradual profit recovery by betting on innovative directions such as solid-state batteries and high-end coating technologies.
At the same time, despite the fierce competition in the industry, there are still publicly listed firms preparing to enter the market. In late April, FSP Hi-Tech announced its plan to acquire Gellec, the third-largest separator producer by shipments, for RMB 5.08 billion, entering the lithium battery separator sector, highlighting the long-term high growth potential and strategic value of this market segment.
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