Economy | Global Power Battery Market Competition intensifies

The latest data released by research institution SNER Research shows that in the first half of 2023, the global newly registered power battery installation volume was 304.3GWh, a year-on-year increase of 50.1%. Among the top ten companies in terms of installed capacity, Chinese companies occupy 6 seats, with a total installed capacity of 190.4 GWh and a market share of 62.6%, while the total market share of the three battery companies in South Korea has dropped to 23.9%.

>The performance of Chinese enterprises in the market is impressive

The top ten Chinese companies with installed vehicles on the list include CATL, BYD, Zhongchuangxin Aviation, Yiwei Lithium Energy, Guoxuan High tech, and Xinwangda. Among them, Ningde Times had a battery installation volume of 112.0 GWh in the first half of the year, a year-on-year increase of 56.2%. It is the only battery supplier in the world with a market share of over 30%, maintaining its global leading position- BYD's installed vehicle volume reached 47.7 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 102.4%, showing nearly double the growth rate in the domestic market, firmly ranking second with a market share of 15.7%.

In the first half of the year, although the battery installation volume of LG New Energy, SKon, and Samsung SDI, the three major battery manufacturers in South Korea, increased overall, their market share was 23.9%, a year-on-year decrease of 2.2 percentage points.

As one of Tesla's main suppliers in the North American market, Panasonic is the only Japanese company in the top ten, with an installed capacity of 22.8 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 39.2%. The hot sales of Tesla ModelY have become the main reason for Panasonic's significant increase in installed capacity.

>>Plays an important role in the supply chain

Ningbo Rongbai New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. recently announced that it has been approved to invest in the construction of a production base in South Korea with an annual output of 80000 tons of ternary precursors and supporting sulfates. According to other data, Chinese battery companies have invested $4 billion in South Korea in the past four months.

Industry insiders believe that Chinese lithium battery companies play an important role in the electric vehicle supply chain, and attempting to break free from their dependence on Chinese companies will pose new challenges to the global supply chain. Recently, James Oh, Vice President of SNER Research, stated that the United States cannot exclude Chinese companies from the electric vehicle supply chain. If cooperation between China and South Korea is prohibited, the United States will never be able to produce electric vehicles.

>>>The market competition is becoming increasingly fierce

Currently, due to factors such as the overall international competition situation, the development of Chinese battery companies in overseas markets may also be affected by policy changes and face unknown risks in the future.

Looking at the domestic market, the competition among top battery companies is becoming increasingly fierce, and patent disputes are unfolding. In July 2021, Ningde Times filed its first lawsuit against China Innovation Aviation for patent infringement, and subsequently sued China Innovation Aviation for infringing on five of its patents. On August 3, China Innovation Airlines announced that the China National Intellectual Property Administration had made an invalid decision on the two invention patents of "lithium ion battery" and "positive pole piece and battery" owned by Ningde Times.

With the increasing concentration of the host factory market, competition and friction between battery companies are inevitable, and patent competition has become one of the means of competition. Ji Xuehong believes that the dominant technology line in the field of power batteries will gradually emerge in the future, and as the market further concentrates, the level of competition will continue to escalate. “

According to recent data released by the China Automotive Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance, Ningde Times had a domestic installed capacity of 66.03GWh in the first half of this year, ranking first in the industry. However, its market share decreased from 47.67% in the same period last year to 43.4%. In the future, the market pattern of power batteries will continue to change. In terms of the domestic market, second tier power battery enterprises are rising, and "one dominant" is not sustainable. Competition between enterprises should avoid forming a vicious cycle.