By Li Panpan

The total installed capacity of electric vehicle power batteries of three Korean companies, LG New Energy, SK On, and Samsung SDI, decreased to 52.4 GWh, accounting for 25.8% of the global market. In contrast, that of Chinese manufacturers CATL and BYD accounted for 34.8% and 11.8% of the global share, respectively, in the same period, said a recent report by South Korean market research agency SNE Research. 

The report showed  from January to June this year, the total installed capacity of electric vehicle power batteries registered worldwide reached 203.4 gigawatt hours (GWh). 

Chinese manufacturers such as CATL achieved triple-digit growth with surging market shares. CATL’s share increased by 6.2 percentage points year-on-year to 34.8%, ranking first, and BYD up by five percentage points year-on-year to 11.8%, ranking third. 

However, it’s noticeable that South Korean battery maker Samsung SDI said on July 29 that its second-quarter revenue and operating profit hit record highs of KRW4.74 trillion ($3.61 billion), a year-on-year increase of 42.2%, and KRW429 billion ($327 million), a year-on-year increase of 45.3%, respectively, due to strong sales of electric vehicle batteries and high-value-added IT materials. It expects to continue its growth momentum in the second half of this year, with sales of fifth-generation batteries surging after its second factory in Hungary opens.

Samsung SDI will invest KRW1.7 trillion ($1.3 billion) to build a new battery plant in Malaysia, and is expected to start mass production of cylindrical batteries in 2024, which can be used in electric vehicles and other markets, added the company.