Strong collaboration! Asahi Kasei signs contract with Toyota

On July 31st, Asahi Kasei announced that it has established a strategic partnership with Toyota Tsusho to supply lithium-ion battery (LIB) separators for automobiles in North America. The two companies' subsidiaries in the United States, Asahi Kasei Battery Separators USA (AKBSA) and Toyota Tsusho America (TAI), have reached a production capacity authorization agreement, and AKBSA will supply Hipore to TAI ™ Wet process lithium-ion battery separator.
According to the agreement, TAI has the right to prioritize sharing AKBSA's Hipore ™ Lithium ion battery separator production capacity. Starting from mid-2027, AKBSA will provide coating Hipore to TAI from its new coating factory currently under construction in Charlotte, North Carolina ™ the diaphragm.

                          
                                              Charlotte factory is building a new Hipore ™ Coating production line
This cooperation enables Asahi Kasei to reduce market volatility risks and effectively utilize resources by maintaining high operating rates. Toyota Tsusho will benefit from the stable supply of lithium-ion battery separators produced at its Charlotte factory, thereby promoting its establishment of an automotive battery supply chain in North America.
By combining Asahi Kasei's advantages in functional materials with Toyota Tsusho's expertise in the mobile field, this collaboration will accelerate the adoption of high-quality wet separators in the North American battery market and promote the manufacturing of higher performance electric vehicles. Toyota Tsusho Corporation was founded in 1948 and is a trading company of the Toyota Group.
In October 2023, Asahi Kasei announced new investments for coating Hipore ™ Equipment for lithium-ion battery separators. The new coating production line will be installed at Asahi Kasei's existing LIB diaphragm factories in the United States, Japan, and South Korea, and is planned to be put into use gradually in the first half of fiscal year 2026. The announced expansion will increase Asahi Kasei's lithium-ion battery separator coating capacity to approximately 1.2 billion square meters per year, enabling it to supply coating separators for batteries equivalent to 1.7 million electric vehicles.

                                       
                                                                                  Hipore ™  LIB diaphragm
Asahi Kasei supplies two types of Hipore ™ Wet process lithium-ion battery separator: polyolefin microporous base membrane separator and coated separator separator coated with ceramic or other coatings on the base membrane.

In order to meet the growing demand in North America, Asahi Kasei is currently advancing plans to establish a battery separator factory in Canada, installing Hipore with an annual production capacity of approximately 700 million square meters ™ Diaphragm, the plan was announced in May 2024. Asahi Kasei's diaphragm business is positioned as a "growth potential" business in its mid-term management plan, with a focus on expanding Hipore ™ Wet process membrane production capacity in North America. The simultaneous development and construction of the Canadian factory with the American factory will enable Asahi Kasei to continue consolidating its position in the growing battery ecosystem in North America.