Market overview

Lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (LiFSI, CAS 171611-11-3) is the leading next-generation lithium salt for battery electrolytes. Compared with LiPF6 it offers higher conductivity, better thermal and hydrolytic stability and improved low-temperature and fast-charge performance, but it corrodes aluminium current collectors at high voltage, so it is mainly blended with LiPF6 rather than replacing it. Nippon Shokubai industrialised the process (2012 to 2013); Chinese producers have since announced enormous capacity, making LiFSI a textbook case of planned capacity running far ahead of demand.

The question this report answers
Will LiFSI overcapacity in China keep prices low, and how fast will cell makers raise LiFSI content versus LiPF6?

Market Krystal preliminary estimate (2025)
Marketintelo values LiFSI at USD 0.8 bn (2025). Given Chinese overcapacity and falling prices, we use USD 0.5-0.9 bn. Confidence grade B: one published estimate, checked against volumes or prices.

Market dynamics
– Demand: co-salt with LiPF6 for better thermal stability and fast charging
– Supply: about 30 Chinese companies planned capacity of 400,000 t (SMM, 2023), far above demand
– Price and margin: priced 3-5x LiPF6 but falling with capacity additions
– Regulation: non-Chinese supply (Nippon Shokubai, Arkema partnership) favoured by US and EU battery rules

Key figures at a glance (third-party, cited)
– Planned Chinese solid LiFSI capacity estimated at 400,000 t by 2025, from about 30 companies with mass-production plans (SMM, March 2023)
– Nippon Shokubai expanded from 300 t/yr to a 2,000 t/yr plant targeted for spring 2023 (Chemical Engineering)
– LiFSI market: USD 0.8 bn (2025) to USD 5.2 bn by 2034 at 22.5% CAGR; LiFSI priced roughly 3 to 5 times LiPF6 (Marketintelo)
– Producers in production include Tinci, Capchem, DFD (Do-Fluoride), Yongtai, Kangpeng, Suzhou Fluolyte and CATL-linked Sicong (SMM)

Recent developments among key stakeholders
– Apr 2025: Nippon Shokubai selected Kitakyushu for a JPY 37.5 bn electrolyte project including a 3,000 t/yr LiFSI plant (construction from January 2026, operations July 2028), with METI support of up to JPY 12.5 bn; its Chinese JV Hunan Fluopont is expanding LiFSI from 1,200 to 12,000 t/yr by March 2026 (Chemical Week)
– 2022 plan: Nippon Shokubai and Arkema agreed to pursue a LiFSI joint venture at Pierre-Benite, France, targeting production by end-2025 (Business Wire)
– H1 2026: Tinci Materials net profit rose about 968% to CNY 2.861 bn; Tinci has signed long-term electrolyte supply agreements totalling over 3.4 Mt (SMM; Pandaily)

What this means for the market
Japan, China and Europe are all subsidising LiFSI capacity, while Chinese leaders lock in multi-year volume. The report tests whether demand can absorb this capacity, and at what price.

How published estimates compare
Marketintelo’s 22.5% CAGR assumes LiFSI’s share of the salt mix keeps rising quickly; planned Chinese capacity of 400,000 t, however, far exceeds any realistic near-term demand, which compresses price and therefore value. Market Krystal models demand by cell chemistry and LiFSI blend ratio, models price against cost curves and utilisation, and shows how volume can grow strongly while market value grows much more slowly.

Strategic scenarios to 2047
– Base: EV and grid-storage cell output keeps rising through 2047, with LFP and high-nickel chemistries coexisting; material demand grows with GWh, but Chinese overcapacity keeps prices near cost for long periods.
– Constrained supply: trade barriers (US FEOC rules, EU battery regulation) split supply chains; non-Chinese material prices settle well above Chinese prices and local plants become strategic.
– Technology transition: sodium-ion, solid-state and new electrolyte salts or additives change the material mix; some incumbents lose volume per GWh while others gain.
The swing factor for Lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (LiFSI) is LiFSI share of electrolyte salt as costs fall. Signposts: GWh installations, solid-state commercial launches, FEOC and EU content rules, Chinese capacity utilisation.

What this report delivers
Annual volume (tonnes) and value (USD) for 2026-2035, segmented by application: EV cells, energy storage, consumer cells, sodium-ion and solid-state research; form: solid vs. solution; grade: battery, industrial; region: China, Japan, South Korea, Europe, North America. Each segment is backed by a producer capacity table, price benchmarks for 2020-2025 by grade and region, trade-flow analysis and a supplier risk map. Companies assessed include Nippon Shokubai, Tinci Materials, Chunbo, Capchem, Do-Fluoride (DFD), Yongtai Technology, Solvay, Kangpeng. The 2036-2047 outlook uses three explicit scenarios (base, constrained supply and technology transition) rather than a single extrapolated curve.

Who uses this report
Cell makers, electrolyte producers and battery-materials investors.

Why our approach is evidence-based
Most CAS-level market listings publish a single number with no audit trail, and we regularly find figures that contradict their own growth rates or exceed the size of the market they sit inside. Market Krystal works the other way round. We start from physical evidence: plant capacities, production and trade data, company disclosures, regulatory texts and price records. We build volume and price separately and only then compute value. Every third-party figure is cited, every Market Krystal estimate is labelled with its method and a confidence grade, and conflicts between sources are shown rather than hidden. Confidence grades: A = two or more independent sources agree, or government or company data; B = one published estimate checked against volumes or prices; C = no reliable published figure, so the range is built from stated assumptions and narrowed in the full report.

Methodology and delivery
Prepared by the Market Krystal Chemicals Research Team. Each report is built around the buyer’s question: after purchase, a short scope confirmation fixes the priority regions, companies and applications, and the report is delivered within 5-7 business days with the Excel model behind every estimate, so buyers can audit and change the assumptions.

The purchased delivery includes the PDF report, Excel datasets and customization around the buyer’s priority region, company set, application or commercial question.

What this research answers

The study connects production routes, named suppliers, applications, regional demand, trade, pricing drivers and commercial opportunities for this CAS number. Detailed estimates and company analysis remain inside the purchased report.