Electric Vehicle Battery: China's CATL Tops for Three Consecutive Months... LG Energy Solution Ranks 2nd

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Chinese battery company CATL has maintained its number one position for the third consecutive month in the global electric vehicle battery market, widening the gap with LG Energy Solution.

According to SNE Research data on the 31st, LG Energy Solution's global electric vehicle (EV, PHEV, HEV) battery usage from January to November this year was 26.4 GWh (gigawatt-hours), accounting for 22.6% of the total usage, ranking second. Chinese CATL recorded 28.1 GWh, accounting for 24.2% of the total electric vehicle battery usage, maintaining its global number one position.

LG Energy Solution first recorded the highest cumulative annual battery usage in March this year and held the top spot until August. However, Chinese CATL overtook it from September, reversing the number one position again.

CATL, supported extensively by the Chinese government, was the number one company in the electric vehicle battery sector for three consecutive years from 2017 to 2019. The gap in battery usage between the two companies widened from 0.3 GWh in September to 1.8 GWh in November this year.

Starting in the second half of this year, CATL began supplying batteries for Tesla Model 3s sold in China, and with the Chinese government extending electric vehicle subsidy policies for two more years, it is expanding its orders. CATL holds about 50% market share in the electric vehicle battery market within China, and it is expected to continue increasing its share in the Chinese market due to differentiated subsidy policies.

The industry expects LG Energy Solution, centered on the European market, and CATL to engage in fierce competition for market share, trading places back and forth in the future.

Japan's Panasonic ranked third with a cumulative 22.3 GWh (19.2%) from January to November, while Samsung SDI and SK Innovation ranked fourth and fifth with 6.8 GWh (5.8%) and 6.5 GWh (5.5%), respectively.

In particular, SK Innovation's electric vehicle battery usage scale increased about 3.4 times compared to the same period last year (1.9 GWh), and its market share increased 2.9 times, thanks to aggressive investments such as expanding overseas factories.

SK Innovation also surpassed Samsung SDI in monthly electric vehicle battery usage for two consecutive months in October and November this year. LG Energy Solution's cumulative electric vehicle battery usage from January to November this year is 2.4 times that of the same period last year, and Samsung SDI's is about 1.7 times that of the previous year.

The cumulative market share of the three 'K-battery' companies reached 33.9%, about twice the 16.6% recorded last year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.