The portable power station is a built-in high-energy-density lithium-ion battery system that can provide a power supply system with stable AC/DC voltage output, which can be used in outdoor travel, emergency disaster preparedness and other scenarios.

Compared with traditional small fuel-fired generators, portable power stations have the advantages of safety, portability, environmental friendliness, no noise, and easy operation. They can be widely used in outdoor leisure, work, rescue and disaster relief and emergency backup.

In recent years, the overall demand environment for the outdoor portable power station market has been good. The main reasons are as follows:

1) Due to the impact of COVID-19, outdoor leisure time has increased significantly in regions such as Europe and North America, resulting in increasing demand for outdoor electricity.

2) The large proportion of wind and solar power grids has affected the stability of power supply, and emergency backup power station has gradually become an important backup in the lives of families in the United States, Japan and South Korea.

3) The emergence of portable power stations fills the market gap of mobile power banks and fuel engines: the charging capacity of conventional mobile power banks on the market is below 0.4KWh, and the charging capacity of mainstream fuel generators is above 3KWh. For outdoor leisure activities, field work, and small emergency backup power for families, the power supply of 0.5~2KWh has been blank for a long time, and it is just filled by portable power stations.

In this context, the demand for portable power stations has continued to grow rapidly in the past three years. In 2021, the global shipment of portable power stations is about 2.9 million units. The market will still grow rapidly, with global shipments expected to reach 19 million units by 2025.

From the perspective of the competition pattern, the current market concentration of portable power stations is relatively high, mainly because the market pattern has not been fully opened.

The leading companies mainly include Hello-Tech, EcoFlow, and Goal Zero. These companies are rapidly expanding their market shares by virtue of their advantages in sales channels and supply chains.

At the same time, Huawei, Xiaomi and companies that used to operate UPS power supplies and mobile power banks are also gearing up to increase the development of the portable power station market.

Lithium-ion batteries account for the highest cost of portable power stations, and are also a key factor in determining the service life and cost reduction speed of portable power stations.

The proportion of lithium-ion batteries in the overall cost of portable power stations is between 50% and 70%. In 2021, the global lithium-ion batteries for portable power stations will be about 1.45GWh. In 2025, the global demand for lithium-ion batteries for portable power stations is expected to exceed 15GWh. There are three core drivers for the continued growth in scale:

1) The charging capacity of a single portable power station has been increased, from ≤0.5KWh, which is the mainstream in 21 years, to more than 1KWh.

2) The outbreak of markets such as outdoor and emergency backup power drives the shipment of portable power stations to continue to grow exponentially.

3) The continuous expansion of the production capacity of consumer 3C lithium-ion batteries has led to a rapid reduction in the cost of lithium batteries, and the sales price of portable power stations has continued to decline.

On the battery cell supply side, due to the special requirements of portable power stations for safety and portability, mature 18650 cells are mainly used, and a small number of models that pursue high-capacity use 21700 cells. In addition to cylindrical cells, polymer pouch cells are also used, but some manufacturers report that the consistency of pouch cells is temporarily difficult to meet the demand, which restricts the further penetration of soft packs.

In terms of the material system of the cell, the requirement for the energy-to-volume ratio of the portable power station makes the ternary material the most widely used route in this market. However, LFP is more cost-effective and safer, and it is expected to occupy a certain market in special occasions such as field rescue and operation in the future.

Portable power stations above 2KW will belong to high-end products with larger backup power capacity in the future, with higher requirements for product safety, battery thermal power management, etc., and higher added value. In the future, they will become the focus of competition among leading portable power station manufacturers.

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