BNEF registers price increases for lithium-ion batteries for the first time since 2010

In its annual battery price survey, market research firm Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) has found a seven percent year-on-year increase in lithium-ion battery packs this year. After more than a decade of continuous declines, this is the first price increase ever since BNEF began tracking the market in 2010. The average value calculated across different sectors is $151 per kilowatt-hour ($/kWh), with significant regional variations: BNEF determined $127/kWh for China, while prices are 24 percent and 33 percent higher in the U.S. and Europe, respectively.
The report cites higher prices for raw materials and battery components, as well as high inflation, as reasons for the increase. BNEF expects a further slight increase to $152/kWh in the coming year and a downward movement again from 2024, mainly due to increasing capacities for the development and processing of lithium. Advances in battery technology, which have already prevented even greater price increases this year, are also likely to have a price-reducing effect, as is the spread of next-generation materials and manufacturing processes.
For 2026, BNEF predicts a drop in prices below the $100/kWh mark, subject to problems that cannot be foreseen today, especially geopolitical ones. This would be two years later than previously assumed. According to the analysts, the delay poses a problem for electric car manufacturers in particular, especially in unsubsidized markets. Equally, however, the high battery prices could also »hurt the economics of energy storage projects.«
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