Asahi Kasei will construct an integrated plant in Ontario, Canada for the base film manufacturing and coating of Hipore™ wet-process lithium-ion battery (LIB) separator. As per the press release, in relation to this plant, Asahi Kasei has concluded a basic agreement with Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda) and the two parties are currently studying joint investment.
“To achieve carbon neutrality, Honda is targeting 100% of global sales from EVs and FCVs by 2040,” said Manabu Ozawa, Managing Executive Officer of Honda. Ozawa added, “We are very excited to partner with Asahi Kasei, having outstanding technological capability and broad expertise regarding separators”. Hiroyoshi Matsuyama, Senior Executive Officer of Asahi Kasei commented, “Capturing market growth in North America will be essential for us. The partnership with Honda, having a rich track record in the North American automotive market and aggressively electrifying its vehicle lineup, allows us to make a meaningful contribution to improvement of lithium-ion-battery performance”.
