Samsung SDI
Samsung SDI made a shipment of over one billion rechargeable battery cells last year for the first time in its history to dominate the global small-size secondary battery market for three in a row.
According to Japan-based market research firm B3 (formerly ITT), Samsung SDI shipped 1.072 billion cells of secondary batteries in 2012 and continued its leadership in the global lithium ion battery market for three consecutive years. Its market share reached as high as 26.0% last year, showing consistent growth from 19.8% of 2010 and 24.3% of 2011. It led Panasonic, the runner-up, by a margin of 7.3% as well though the gap had been as narrow as 0.9% in 2011.
B3 analyzed in its report that Samsung SDI dealt successfully with the decreasing market demand for cylindrical rechargeable batteries by means of its new business in Malaysia, cost reduction and expansion of new applications such as electric bicycles. “The company maintained its lead in the rectangular battery segment of the market with its products used in the Galaxy smart phones,” it added.
Korea is continuing to increase its presence in the global rechargeable battery industry while successfully keeping its rivals Japan and China in check. In 2010, Japanese manufacturers had recorded a combined shipment of approximately 1.6 billion cells and their Korean counterparts’ was about 1.36 billion. However, the former’s figure fell to 1.24 billion whereas the latter’s rose to 1.79 billion. Chinese players, in the meantime, increased their supply from 0.78 billion to 0.876 billion between 2010 and 2012 to pose a challenge to Korean and Japanese secondary battery manufacturers.
“Last year, we shifted our product portfolio focus to high value added products used in smart phones, tablet PCs and the like while diversifying our customer base by opening up new markets,” said Samsung SDI president Park Sang-jin, continuing, “We’ll further solidify our presence in the market by widening the technological gap.”