The rise of electric cars means they could end up needing more battery fluid than consumer electronics in three years, suggests new market research.

From phone batteries to rechargeable batteries, consumer electronics had the largest demand for lithium battery electrolyte, using 80.7% of it in 2013, according to RnRMarketResearch.com.

Electric vehicles had a much smaller share of the market, at 13.5%.

But this could switch over suggests the research, with slower growth in demand for consumer electronics projected at the same time as people buy more electric vehicles.

This could see the EV’s demand for lithium battery electrolyte exceed consumer electronics’ in 2018.