Recently, portable power station has exploded in the global market. In the past 4 years, the size of the portable power station market has increased by 23 times. In terms of sales distribution, the United States and Japan account for more than 75% of the market. Chinese companies have been the biggest beneficiaries of this market boom.
The portable power station market is growing rapidly
In addition to the increase in demand for outdoor products, technological changes on the supply side are also a factor that cannot be ignored. Research institutions predict that the portable power station market will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 48% in the next five years, and will reach 80 billion yuan in 2026. Unicorns with annual sales of 10 billion will be born in China soon.
What is Portable Power Station?
A portable power station, also known as a battery-powered inverter generator or airless generator, is a rechargeable battery-powered generator with enough capacity to power your home or RV on a camping trip. It has the characteristics of large capacity, high power, safety, and portability, and can provide stable AC/DC The power supply system with voltage output, the battery capacity is 100Wh-3000Wh, equipped with AC, DC, Type-C, USB, PD, and other interfaces, which can match the mainstream electronic equipment in the market, suitable for outdoor travel, emergency disaster relief, medical rescue, Outdoor work, and many other scenes.
Compared with common power banks, outdoor portable energy storage products have higher charge capacity and output power. It is understood that portable energy storage products can be divided into two categories according to capacity: one is small and lightweight equipment with a capacity of 500-1000wh; the other is a device with a capacity of 1500 wh to 2000wh, which can mainly replace market for fuel generators.
In terms of convenient output power, Portable Power Stations can reach 100W to 2200W and are equipped with USB, AC, DC, Type-C, PD, and other interfaces, which can power digital devices such as refrigerators, rice cookers, and small household appliances. Since Portable Power stations usually carry inverters, they can support alternating current and direct current output, and the price is mostly between $300 and $3,000. In contrast, the commonly used power bank can only support DC output.
In addition to charging via a wall outlet, Portable Power Station can also be used with solar panels. The output power of a single solar panel is between 60w and 200w so that when the battery is exhausted, the energy storage can be charged outdoors using solar panels. The power generation system realizes continuous off-grid power generation and prolongs the battery life.
From the perspective of the global market, China is the main producer of Portable Power stations.
Why have Portable Power stations become popular?
The explosion of Portable Power Stations is driven by both the supply side and the demand side.
From the perspective of demand
The popularity of outdoor activities in developed countries in Europe and the United States is relatively high, and the demand for outdoor energy products has always existed. Looking at the two major markets of Japan and the United States alone, the proportion of the population in the United States participating in outdoor activities is 48%, which is conducive to the rapid penetration of portable energy storage products and broad market space; at the same time, Japan has frequent earthquake disasters, and the people have a strong sense of disaster prevention and emergency backup. Products are sold year-round in Japan.
Global enthusiasm for outdoor sports is high, and outdoor consumption such as family self-driving tours, small picnics, camping, photography, fishing, etc. has been upgraded. Outdoor Portable Power Station has become the mainstream of short-distance power consumption; uncertain factors such as power outages have pushed up the demand for power backup in emergency scenarios, and home used Portable Power Station rate keeps rising.
From the supply side
Technological changes have greatly improved the convenience and practicability of products. In the early days, the power supply for outdoor and emergencies was mainly provided by small fuel generators or lead-acid batteries, but they all had their shortcomings. Parts problems will occur after the fuel generator is placed for a long time, and it must be maintained frequently. The other is that the noise is very loud, the operation is complicated, the volume is relatively large and the movement is limited; lead-acid batteries, which are the batteries of many two-wheeled electric vehicles. Lead-acid batteries also have their own problems, that is, short life and poor battery life.
The upgrading of lithium battery technology and the continuous reduction of costs under large-scale commercial applications have provided conditions for the explosion of portable Power stations. It is understood that the large-scale production of portable Power Station products is inseparable from the substantial increase in energy density brought about by technological breakthroughs in lithium batteries.
With the support of demand growth, technological progress, and cost reduction, the portable energy storage track has been in production since 2018 and exploded in 2020. The report shows that from 2018 to 2021, the global portable energy storage market will be 470 million Yuan, 1.34 billion yuan RMB, 4.26 billion yuan Yuan, and 11.13 billion Yuan.
In the next few years, the industry generally expects that portable energy storage will also be in a period of rapid growth. GGII statistics show that the annual scale of 2021 will reach 11.13 billion Yuan. It is expected that by 2026, the global portable energy storage market will exceed 80 billion Yuan, with a 5-year compound growth rate of 48%.
portable power stations for camping
Cost reduction is conducive to the popularization of Portable Power Stations
Solar panels are important supporting products for Portable Power Stations, and their battery life can be further improved through photovoltaic power generation. In recent years, the cost of photovoltaic products has been greatly reduced, and with the development of technologies such as large silicon wafers, double-sided, and shingled, photovoltaic power generation efficiency will be further improved and costs will be reduced. As an important supporting product for Portable Power Station products, the advancement of photovoltaic technology will also be conducive to the popularization of portable energy storage products.
Overall, 2022 will be in the initial stage of the development of the Portable Power Station field. The Portable Power Station market has promising prospects, but the market is in the early stages of development. For new entrants, it is both an opportunity and a challenge.
