High Differential Strategy
The Samsung Group is planning to attain a monopoly in the automobile battery market, akin to its leading position in the global semiconductor industry. Under the circumstances, a large amount of investment in auto parts R&D is expected to be made in Samsung SDI and relevant subsidiaries.
“Based on the result of a recent business assessment, we decided to take automobile business as the center of Samsung SDI’s portfolio,” the group explained, continuing, “Samsung SDI is going to achieve a leading position in the industry as Samsung Electronics has in the semiconductor sector so that its competitors have no choice but to use its products.”
Samsung SDI is a global leading manufacturer of small batteries used in smart phones but is a late starter when it comes to larger batteries for automobiles. At present, Panasonic enjoys a market share of 39.7 percent in the global electrical vehicle battery market, followed by AESC (23.6 percent), LG Chem (12.9 percent) and Samsung SDI (4.6 percent).
Samsung SDI is going to reshape its business to focus more on the automobile industry and catch up with all the competitors in the car battery sector in the near future. The Samsung Group’s reorganization plan, which is scheduled to be finalized within this week, is forecast to reflect the intention.