Korean battery majors rapidly chased by Chinese competitors, SK on moves up

SK on was the sole Korean battery major to bolster its market share whereas its home rivals suffered from fast ascension of Chinese competition, according to SNE Research survey of electric car sales in 80 countries for the first four months of the year.

SK on bumped up its market share, jumping from 5.3 percent to 7 percent, moving up a notch to sixth place in global rank thanks to brisk sale of Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6.

During the same period, the EV batteries that were sold were 122.9 GWh, up 83.4 percent compared to the same period last year.

Gains by LG Energy Solution and Samsung SDI stopped at 19.1 percent and 26.9 percent, respectively, while its Chinese competitors kept up growth in three digit numbers.

LG Energy Solution’s market share fell from 22.9 percent to 14.9 percent as of April while Samsung SDI’s dropped from 5.8 percent to 4 percent. LG Energy Solution maintained No. 2 rank for cumulative global battery usage, while Samsung SDI’s slipped two notches to seventh place.

LG Energy Solution’s drop in market share was also due to the plummeting sales volume of Tesla Model 3 and Y which are equipped with LG Energy Solution and CATL batteries in Europe and China in April.

Chinese companies such as Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) and BYD kept up strong growths.

The growth rate of the No. 1 battery supplier CATL soared 114.1 percent on year while BYD’s surged 224.5 percent. China Aviation Lithium Battery (CALB), which grew 170.9 percent on year during the same period, ranked sixth in market share and ahead of Samsung SDI.

According to SNE Research, the EV battery market showed steady growth over the past 22 months despite the continuing Covid-19 pandemic. CATL and LG Energy Solutions are expected to improve after a decline in their growth rate in April due to the disruptions in Tesla production facilities during the lockdown in China.

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