Korean Battery Market Share at 26.3% in Q1... Down 6.9%P, Losing Ground to China

Majority Market Share Held by Chinese Firms Including CATL
LG Energy Solution Ranks 2nd with 15.9%

The LG Energy Solution exhibition hall at 'InterBattery 2022' held on March 17 in Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, COEX. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] In the first quarter of this year, the three domestic companies showed double-digit growth in battery usage for global electric vehicles (EV, PHEV, HEV), but their market share declined due to the rise of Chinese companies.

According to energy market research firm SNE Research on the 2nd, the total battery energy capacity of electric vehicles registered worldwide in the first quarter of this year was 95.1 gigawatt-hours (GWh), about twice that of the first quarter of last year. SNE Research explained that the market has been steadily rising since the third quarter of 2020.

Chinese companies, including CATL (35.0%), which holds the largest market share, and BYD (15.9%), ranked third, led the market growth. The battery usage for electric vehicles by CATL and BYD in the first quarter increased by 137.7% and 220.4%, respectively, compared to the first quarter of last year.

Among the three domestic companies, LG Energy Solution recorded second place with a 39.1% increase in battery usage to 15.1 GWh during the same period. For LG Energy Solution, strong sales of Tesla Model Y (China-made), Volkswagen ID.4, and Audi Q4 e-tron positively contributed to the growth. However, its market share fell to 15.9% from 22.1% in the first quarter of last year.

SK On's battery usage increased by 141.9% compared to the first quarter of last year, reaching 6.3 GWh. Its market share remained fifth at 6.6%. SK On's high growth was driven by increased sales of Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia Niro EV, and EV6. Samsung SDI's battery usage rose by 26.2% compared to the same period last year, supported by strong sales of BMW iX and Fiat 500. However, its market share dropped by 2 percentage points from 5.8% to 3.8%.

The combined market share of the three domestic companies in the first quarter was 26.3%, down 6.9 percentage points from 33.2% in the first quarter of last year. Japanese companies, including Panasonic, also showed growth rates significantly below the market average, resulting in a decline in market share.

Meanwhile, global electric vehicle battery usage in March reached 41.4 GWh, 1.7 times that of the same month last year. SNE Research noted that it remains to be seen how issues such as China's lockdowns, the Ukraine crisis, and semiconductor supply will affect future electric vehicle sales.

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