China's Electric Vehicle Battery Usage Drops 40.5% in May... Declines for 10 Consecutive Months
[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] The usage of batteries in electric vehicles (EV, PHEV, HEV) in China has decreased for 10 consecutive months since August last year. This is due to a sharp decline in demand for battery electric vehicles (BEV) amid the ongoing impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and factors such as economic recession.
On the 30th, SNE Research announced that the total battery energy capacity of electric vehicles registered in China in May 2020 was 3.5 GWh, a sharp drop of 40.5% compared to the same month last year. A double-digit decline has been observed since August 2019. However, the rate of decrease has been steadily shrinking after peaking at 74% in February, followed by 51.0% in March and 41.2% in April.
By electric vehicle type, battery usage for PHEVs (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles) and HEVs (hybrid electric vehicles) increased by double digits, but the overall decline was driven by a 44.3% plunge in the usage of BEVs, which account for the overwhelming majority.
In May, sales of electric vehicles in China totaled 101,000 units, down 24.3% from the same month last year, marking an 11th consecutive month of decline. While BEV sales continued to decrease, both PHEV and HEV sales increased by double digits, showing a clear recovery trend.
SNE Research evaluated that "since PHEVs and HEVs have significantly lower battery capacity per unit than BEVs, the increase in PHEV and HEV sales alone is insufficient to offset the local market downturn."
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Meanwhile, the cumulative battery usage for electric vehicles in China from January to May 2020 was 12.7 GWh, a sharp decline of 49.1% compared to the same period last year. This is the result of double-digit monthly decreases in electric vehicle sales since January. However, the rate of decline has been decreasing since June in China, and the recovery trend is expected to gradually expand.
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