In January and February, South Korea’s LG Energy Solution emerged as the world’s second-largest battery supplier for automobiles, surpassing China’s BYD, which fell to third place. This shift in ranking was partly attributed to BYD’s declining sales of electric vehicles during the eight-day Lunar New Year holiday period.
According to a report by South Korean institute SNE Research, LG Energy Solution, a leading South Korean battery company, has surpassed its Chinese counterpart BYD in global electric vehicle battery usage during the first two months of the year.
In these two months, BYD experienced a 3.1 percent decline in installed capacity compared to last year, amounting to 12.1 gigawatt hours. Furthermore, its market share contracted by four percentage points, dropping to 13.1 percent. Unlike in China, South Korea’s shorter Lunar New Year break lasts only four days.
Meanwhile, LG Energy Solution witnessed an uptick in battery usage for electric vehicles, reaching 12.7 gigawatt-hours, marking a 24.8 percent increase from the previous year. Despite this growth, LGES’s market share slightly dipped to 13.7 percent, although it still maintained its position as the world’s second-largest EV battery supplier, trailing behind CATL.
Meanwhile, Samsung SDI saw an increase in installed volume, rising by 47.4 percent year-on-year to reach 5.2 GWh, with a market share of 5.6 percent. On the other hand, SK On witnessed a decline in deployment, dropping by 1.7 percentage points to 4.5 percent, following a year-on-year decrease of 7.3 percent to 4.2 GWh.
Despite maintaining its position in the top five, Japanese firm Panasonic experienced an 11.8 percent year-on-year decline in EV deployment to 6.2 GWh, attributed to reduced orders from its primary client, Tesla.
Six Chinese companies dominated the top 10 electric vehicle battery manufacturers list, collectively holding a 60.8 percent market share, representing a 2.1 percentage point increase compared to the previous year. Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), based in Ningde, experienced a surge in installed capacity, rising by 44.9 percent to 35.5 GWh.
CATL’s wide-ranging clientele includes major Chinese EV manufacturers like Zeekr and Li Auto, as well as international automakers such as Tesla, BMW, and Volkswagen, making it the sole battery supplier with a global market share exceeding 30 percent, which expanded by 4.8 percentage points to 38.4 percent.
Other notable companies in the top 10 EV battery makers list include CALB Group, Gotion High-Tech, EVE Energy, and Svolt Energy Technology, all of which saw growth in their installed capacity. Among them, Svolt Energy Technology, based in Changzhou, experienced the most rapid growth at 184.3 percent.
Svolt Energy Technology’s Chairman Yang Hongxin recently announced that the company shipped over 15,000 vehicles to overseas markets in the first quarter, representing nearly 20 percent of total auto exports.
According to SNE Research, global EV battery usage increased by 27 percent year-on-year to reach 92.4 GWh in the first two months of the year.
Also Read:
- Samsung Electronics Set to Receive Billions in U.S. Subsidies for Semiconductor Expansion
- Is Kakao Brain the Missing Link? Kakao’s Move to Merge Sparks Curiosity
- Hanwha Aerospace Announces Spin-off of Non-military Businesses to Focus on Defense Division
- South Korea Commits $527 Million to AI Integration in Everyday Life
- Samsung Explores Generative AI Upgrade for Bixby: Enhancing Device Functionality
