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3. Automotive Lightweight Materials Companies - BASF SE (Germany), Covestro AG (Germany), LyondellBasell Industries Holdings B.V. (Netherlands), Toray Industries, Inc. (Japan), and ArcelorMittal (Germany) are the Leading Players

The automotive lightweight materials market is projected to grow from USD 73.9 billion in 2022 to USD 101.5 billion by 2027, at a CAGR of 6.5% for the same period. The base year for the report is 2021, and the forecast period is from 2022 to 2027.

The automotive lightweight materials market is highly competitive.

Major automotive lightweight materials market Companies include

• BASF SE (Germany),
• Covestro AG (Germany),
• LyondellBasell Industries Holdings B.V. (Netherlands),
• Toray Industries, Inc. (Japan),
• ArcelorMittal (Germany)

These companies adopted expansion strategies and undertook collaborations, partnerships, and mergers & acquisitions to gain traction in the automotive lightweight materials market. These players have a presence across all major countries in the global market, serving the OE demand with a market share of 50-60% around the world.

The market is expected to grow mainly because of the increasing demand for lightweight premium vehicles with all the safety features present in the vehicle. Furthermore, increasing safety, emission regulations, increased growth of electric vehicles, and other factors drive the demand for the automotive lightweight materials market.

To know about the assumptions considered for the study download the pdf brochure

BASF SE (Germany):

BASF SE has followed its development strategy with various joint ventures, acquisitions, and collaborations. The company has used this as its primary strategy to remain dominant in the automotive lightweight materials market. For instance, in September 2022, BASF SE signed a partnership agreement with Citroen to showcase their new electric car, which had applications of lightweight material in their vehicle, which showcased the less usage of resources by reducing the cost of the car and improving the battery lifespan. Furthermore, the company also acquired SOLVAY to increase its product portfolio in January 2019. In contrast, BASF SE, after acquiring their nylon business of Solvay, expanded the portfolio by entering into textiles, carpets, and car components. BASF SE has invested around 2.9% of its total revenue in research and development in 2021. In April 2022, BASF SE and SINOPEC joined in a joint partnership in Nanjing (China) to expand its chemical production plant and support the increased demand in China. Looking to have a firm hold in the Asia Pacific region, BASF SE is constructing the first plant of its smart Verbund project in Zhanjiang, Guangdong (China). The first plant is expected to produce engineering plastics and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) to cater to the increasing needs of various industries in southern China and throughout Asia. Some major customers of BASF SE are Acura, Audi, BMW, Chrysler, Daimler Trucks, Fiat, Ford, Hyundai, Jaguar, etc.

Covestro AG (Germany):

Covestro AG is a global supplier of high-tech polymer materials and related components. Before September 2015, it was known as Bayer Material Science. The company primarily focuses on research and development activities. For instance, it spent around 2.1% of its revenue on research and development activities. This enables the company to develop innovations and compete with the latest lightweight technologies and products. The company offers a comprehensive product portfolio that includes a variety of high-tech polymers, polycarbonate, polyurethane, coatings, adhesives, specialties, electrical/electronics, automotive, construction, fashion, and cosmetics for customers. Covestro AG also actively participate in expanding its services worldwide and currently has a presence in many countries across the Americas, Europe, and Asia Pacific and holds ten research and development center across Europe and the Middle East, North America, and APAC region. With ample opportunities in electric cars and other vehicle sales, Covestro AG invested in November 2022 to expand their production line for Vulkollan® raw materials based in Thailand to cater to the demand for high-performance elastomers. The partnership and acquisition strategy from Covestro AG and Coleitec has led to the expansion of composite lightweight material manufacturing from polyurethane, which will be used for the battery pack field for electric vehicles.

LyondellBasell Industries Holdings B.V. (Netherlands):

LyondellBasell Industries Holdings B.V (Germany) is one of the key players in the automotive lightweight materials market, mainly manufacturing plastics, chemicals, and refinery products. The company has an extensive network of sales and dealers, which helps them to serve the regional demand. The company has 94 production plants in 32 countries. With continued competition and development, LyondellBasell Industries Holdings B.V and CSPC had a joint venture for using CSPC’s Spherizone technology, which will be used to manufacture 500 kilotons per year polypropylene lines in Guangdong (China) in various sectors including automobile and hold a firm grip in Asia Pacific region. It has adopted the strategy of acquisition and expansion to extend its product range and geographical reach. For instance, the company has expanded its PP production capacity in Houston (USA), looking at the high demand in North America with the help of their existing technology of converting ethylene into propylene for the production of polypropylene and propylene oxide, which will used in cars bumpers and other industry.

Toray Industries, Inc. (Japan):

Toray Industries (Japan), Inc. mainly focuses on nanotechnology and specializes in industrial products centered on technologies. The company strongly focuses on acquisition and partnership to increase their products portfolio and offerings in the highly competitive market. For instance, with their subsidiary Toray Textiles Central Europe S.R.O. and Toray Advanced Materials Korea Inc., the company set up a new facility in the Czech Republic in September 2022 to expand their automotive interior sound acoustic Insulation business in Europe, considering the high demand. Again, in December 2021, Toray Industries Inc. expanded its business by increasing its advanced material to manufacture polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) compound with an investment of 300 billion in the Saemangeum industrial complex (South Korea). In June 2022, the company opened its new marketing and development office to grow its environmental and mobility business in Otsu (Japan), providing advanced material and cross-disciplinary collaboration with other brands for sales and marketing. The company has 12 operating units with mines in operation with centralized marketing organization to customers with a global footprint presence in 155 countries.

ArcelorMittal (Germany):

ArcelorMittal (Germany) has many products, solutions, and services for automotive customers. They specialize in high-strength, tensile, and aluminized steel for the automotive industry. The company has focused on various merger and acquisition activities where ArcelorMittal & Nippon Steel acquired Essar Steel in December 2019 to increase their strength in the Asia Pacific region. In November 2021, ArcelorMittal acquired Grupo Condesa with their four plants in Spain and Germany, including cold profiling and welded pipe mills for the automobile sector and other industrial purposes. With a joint venture and advanced engineering team, ArcelorMittal and Atlis Motor have come together to develop all-electric trucks and XP platform with S-in motion, which generates lightweight material for BIW and battery packs for increasing the range of the vehicle.

Related Reports:

Automotive Lightweight Materials Market by Material (Metal, Composite, Plastic, Elastomer), Application & Component (Frame, Engine, Exhaust, Transmission, Closure, Interior), Vehicle (ICE, Electric, Micro-mobility & UAV) and Region - Global Forecast to 2027

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