Korean Battery Association to Create Reliable Statistics for Three Leading Battery Companies

The Korea Battery Industry Association, which includes the three major domestic battery companies, will release its own battery statistics. Due to the lack of reliable data and ongoing concerns about errors in battery statistics, there has been a growing need for accurate and credible statistics.

According to the Battery Association on the 18th, the association plans to announce data including the battery market size and each company's mass production capacity in the second half of this year. The association is expected to compile statistical figures based on data collected from domestic finished battery cell manufacturers. An association official stated, "However, the decision to release the statistics will be made after discussions with the companies."

There has been strong demand within the battery industry for accurate information to be delivered to the market. The Battery Association has received numerous suggestions to "create credible statistics." The consensus was that private research firms' battery statistics do not allow for an accurate assessment of domestic battery companies' production capacity and scale.

In particular, most battery statistics have been based on data originating from China. This is because China has secured the battery value chain, research infrastructure, and production plants. Among these, there have been voices claiming that the three domestic companies are undervalued due to uncertainties in Chinese statistics. An industry insider said, "(So far, battery statistics) have shown the trend of explosive growth in electric vehicle sales in China, but when examined in detail, the battery sales figures (collaborated with each company) were roughly estimated based on electric vehicle sales volume," adding, "If credible statistics are produced, they could provide important benchmarks for industry stakeholders and investors."

In March of this year, visitors to 'InterBattery 2022,' a specialized battery exhibition including secondary batteries held at COEX in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, examined a model of a portable energy storage system (ESS) on display. The photo is not directly related to the article. [Image source=Yonhap News]

There are several challenges in securing battery statistics, which is also why official statistics have not been released until now. First, it is difficult to assess each country's battery manufacturing capacity based on export information. Due to the heavy weight of batteries and each country's eco-friendly energy and protective trade policies, the trend of establishing local production plants is becoming stronger. Therefore, it is not possible to evaluate each country's battery manufacturing capacity based on export data.

It is also difficult to verify corporate competitiveness through statistics that rank companies based on production volume. Compared to other industries such as semiconductors and automobiles, the battery industry is still in its infancy. Since battery products have not yet been standardized or regulated, there are criticisms that simple comparisons based solely on production scale, such as GWh, are insufficient.

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