OPA film: Overseas production capacity withdrawn, domestic companies step in

Thread Content

BOPA film: Withdrawal of overseas production capacity, with domestic companies stepping in. BOPA film (commonly known as nylon film), thanks to its high strength, excellent barrier properties, high transparency, and suitability across a wide temperature range (from -60°C to 150°C), has become the third most widely used film packaging material after BOPP and BOPET. 1. Product definition: BOPA film is a high-performance film produced by using polyamide (mainly PA6) as raw material, through processes such as melt extrusion, casting, biaxial stretching, heat setting, and cooling. It possesses excellent mechanical properties, puncture resistance, and oxygen barrier capabilities, and can maintain structural stability at extreme temperatures ranging from -60°C to 150°C. It is widely used in fields such as food packaging, pharmaceutical blisters, and aluminum-plastic films for lithium batteries. II. Application Areas 1. Food Packaging: BOPA films have higher strength compared to PE and BOPP films, and they offer advantages in terms of cost and environmental friendliness over EVOH and PVDC films. The demand for BOPA films in the food industry accounts for as much as 70%. It is specifically suitable for freezing, steaming, vacuum packaging, as well as oily foods and liquid seasonings. 2. Pharmaceutical and personal care product packaging: used for drug blisters, cosmetic tubes, and packaging for cleaning products. With the improvement of standards for cold-chain transportation of biologics, the demand for packaging materials in the pharmaceutical industry is growing at an annual rate of over 11%. 3. New energy: Aluminum-plastic films used in soft-pack lithium batteries, providing protection against impacts and corrosion by electrolytes. In March 2025, Changsu Industry, a subsidiary of Zhonglun New Materials, was the first to introduce the world’s first BOPA film designed specifically for solid-state batteries. The demand for BOPA in the field of soft-pack lithium batteries is expected to reach 119,500 tons by 2030. 4. Industry and home use: insulation for electronic components, vacuum storage bags, balloon decorations, etc. The expansion of e-commerce logistics is driving steady growth in demand. III. Market supply and demand 1. China is the world’s largest producer of BOPA film, with its production capacity continuing to expand. From 2016 to 2023, China’s BOPA film production capacity increased from 136,500 tons to 326,000 tons. Global demand for BOPA film increased from 271,300 tons in 2016 to 494,000 tons between 2016 and 2023. Zhonglun New Materials is a leading enterprise in China, with a market share of 36% in the domestic market in 2023. Between 2016 and 2023, it is estimated that the demand for BOPA films in China will increase from 100,000 tons to 250,000 tons. China has become the world’s major market for BOPA films, with its demand in 2023 accounting for 49.8% of the global total. Factors driving this demand include the rapid growth of new food categories such as pre-prepared meals and low-temperature meat products, which has led to a surge in the need for oxygen- and moisture-resistant composite films ； The rapid expansion of the soft-pack lithium battery market has directly driven an increase in the demand for BOPA film used in aluminum-plastic packaging. In terms of product profits, the production capacity in the BOPA film industry has continued to grow over the past few years, resulting in a decline in the industry’s gross margin from 22% in 2020 to 18% in 2024. As the proportion of high-end products increases (such as BOPA used for lithium-ion battery aluminum-plastic films and BOPA specific for solid-state batteries), the added value of these products is expected to rise. Leading companies maintain strong profitability in the high-end market through technological innovation and optimization of product structures. V. Production Process and Technical Sources 1. Main Production Processes The primary methods for manufacturing BOPA films are the flat film process and the tubular film process, among which the biaxial stretching method is the most widely used. The biaxial stretching method is further divided into two processes: synchronous stretching and asynchronous (step-by-step) stretching. Synchronous stretching method (the mainstream high-end approach): The synchronous biaxial stretching process can effectively address the bowing effect issue, resulting in BOPA films with good quality consistency. The synchronous stretching technology using magnetic levitation linear motors enables intelligent adjustment of the stretching ratio, resulting in a 13% reduction in energy consumption; the precision of thickness control is improved to within ±3μm. The asynchronous stretching method (the commonly used standard) involves first performing longitudinal stretching and then horizontal stretching. It requires less investment in equipment and offers higher production capacity, making it suitable for general food packaging. However, it causes a significant bowing effect that affects the flatness of the bags. 2. Technological advancements: The production technology for BOPA films was long dominated by foreign companies, leading to high barriers to entry in this industry. Before 2000, this industry was monopolized by foreign companies. After more than 20 years of development, China has become a major global production and processing hub for BOPA films. Zhonglun New Materials is one of the very few companies in the world that possesses technology for membrane production ranging from the second generation to the fifth generation, and it holds over 200 core patents. In January 2026, Zhonglun New Materials’ production facility in Indonesia began operations, utilizing its own innovative fifth-generation low-carbon biaxial stretching technology. This marked the first time that a Chinese company exported an advanced BOPA manufacturing system overseas. VI. Major manufacturers and their production capacities: Zhonglun New Materials (Xiamen Changsu): The production capacity in 2022 was 98,200 tons, and by 2027 it is expected to increase by another 59,000 tons. It has three production bases in Xiamen, Quanzhou, and Indonesia. The Indonesian facility is planned to have an annual production capacity of 90,000 tons; the first phase will come online in January 2026. Once operational at full capacity, it will become the largest production base for BOPA functional films in Southeast Asia. Cangzhou Mingzhu: its production capacity in 2022 was 28,500 tons, with an additional 76,000 tons planned for future production. . Yuncheng Plastics Industry: Production capacity of 80,000 tons in 2022. Fosun Plastics Technology: Production capacity of 15,800 tons in 2020. Shenna Shares: Production capacity of 10,000 tons in 2022, with an additional plan to increase it to 45,000 tons. Major overseas manufacturers include UNITIKA (production capacity of 51,500 tons in 2022), Hyosung Chemical (38,400 tons in 2020), A.J.Plast (30,000 tons), etc. VII. Industry development trends 1. Accelerated shift towards higher-end products: The general-purpose market is saturated, and functional and specialized products have become the main sources of profit. The share of high-value products such as BOPA films dedicated to solid-state batteries and BOPA used for aluminum-plastic films in soft-pack lithium batteries is increasing. 2. New energy: The market for soft-pack lithium batteries is expanding rapidly; the demand for BOPA in this sector is set to grow at a compound annual rate of 23.06% from 2021 to 2024, with this figure expected to reach 119,500 tons by 2030. The trend of using BOPA films as a substitute for traditional PET-based materials is accelerating. Global expansion is also intensifying: Zhonglun New Materials’ facility in Indonesia, the first overseas production site in China’s functional film industry, has been put into operation to bypass trade barriers and capture emerging markets in Southeast Asia. As old production capacities in countries such as Japan and South Korea are phased out, domestic companies gain opportunities to expand overseas