Kureha Battery Materials Japan

Kureha Battery Materials Japan (KBMJ) was a joint venture focused on the manufacturing and sale of materials for lithium-ion batteries (LiBs). The company was established in April 2011 by Kureha Corporation and ITOCHU Corporation to produce and sell CARBOTRON® P, a hard carbon anode material, and to sell KF Polymer binder materials for LiBs. Operations officially commenced in October 2011. The venture aimed to leverage Kureha's technological and manufacturing capabilities with ITOCHU's global business development and management resources to establish its materials as a de facto standard in the growing LiB market, particularly for automotive and industrial applications.

In August 2012, the joint venture expanded to include Kuraray Co., Ltd. and the Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) as investors. Kuraray's involvement was aimed at commercializing BIOCARBOTRON, a plant-based hard carbon anode material, while INCJ provided financial backing to foster innovation and global expansion. This collaboration created a financial framework of nearly JPY 20 billion to support the global growth of the LiB materials business. However, due to slower-than-expected market growth for electric vehicle batteries, the partners decided to dissolve the joint venture in December 2015. As a result, Kureha Corporation acquired all equity stakes, and KBMJ's business, including the manufacturing and sales of CARBOTRON® P and KF Polymer binders, was fully transferred back to Kureha Corporation effective April 1, 2016, after which KBMJ was dissolved.

KBMJ's primary products were hard carbon anode materials and binders for LiBs. Its main offering, CARBOTRON® P, is a hard carbon anode material derived from petroleum pitch, noted for its durability and charge/discharge characteristics, making it suitable for industrial-use LiBs. The company also sold KF Polymer, a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) binder. The business model was centered on manufacturing and supplying these specialized materials to battery producers, targeting the expanding market for electric vehicles and large-scale energy storage systems.

Keywords: hard carbon anode, lithium-ion battery materials, PVDF binder, battery components, CARBOTRON P, KF Polymer, energy storage solutions, electric vehicle batteries, specialty chemicals, advanced materials, petroleum pitch, anode materials, battery manufacturing, joint venture, Kuraray, Itochu, INCJ, automotive industry, industrial batteries, battery technology.