By Greg Gao

CATL, a global leader in lithium-ion battery based in Ningde, southeastern China’s Fujian Province, continues to dominate the global EV battery market with an installed capacity of 18.4 gigawatt-hours(GWh) and ranks first with a 34.4 percent market share in the first two months in 2022, according to statistics from SNE research.

The global EV battery installed capacity was 53.5 GWh in January and February 2022 and more than doubled in one year, SNE Research pointed out.

The list is entirely Asian: LG Energy Solution came second with a total capacity of 7.4 GWh. Its market share fell from 20.7 percent to 13.8 percent. LG’s batteries are used in Tesla Model Y, Volkswagen ID.4, and Audi Q4 e-tron.

China’s EV and power battery manufacturer BYD beat Panasonic and came in third with its market share up to 11.9 percent. Panasonic recorded 5.8 GWh installed capacity and 10.8 percent market share, falling to the fourth. SK On came in fifth with a 6.5 percent share.

With the substantial increase of EV penetration worldwide, power battery shipments will enter the “TWh” era in the next few years, Zeng Yuqun, Chairman of CATL, predicted. Meanwhile, the energy storage industry has ushered in explosive growth. From January to September 2021, the capacity utilization rate of CATL’s lithium battery products reached 97.30%.

CATL is considering sites across North America for a massive $5 billion plant to supply customers including Tesla Inc. The company aims to build a factory capable of producing as much as 80 GWh of batteries a year, according to a report by Bloomberg.