LG Energy Solution Ranked 2nd with 23.1% Share
The combined market share of the three major Korean electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturers stood at 33.5 percent in the first five months of 2021, according to SNE Research, an energy research company, on June 30. The figure represented a small drop from 34.9 percent during the same period a year ago.
By company, LG Energy Solution came in second with 23.1 percent and Samsung SDI fifth with 5.3 percent and SK Innovation sixth with 5.1 percent. Japan's Panasonic took third place with a 14.7 percent share.
China’s CATL ranked first with 31.2 percent and BYD fourth with 6.9 percent. It is noteworthy that Chinese battery companies showed high growth. In fact, CATL saw its share increase sharply from 22 percent in 2020 to 31.2 percent in 2021. BYD saw its share increase from 5.9 percent to 6.9 percent during the same period.
Industry insiders previously played down the growth of Chinese battery companies, saying that they will not pose a big threat to the three Korean battery makers in the global market as their main playground is China. However, Chinese battery manufacturers have recently expanded presence in markets outside of China such as Europe, undermining the market shares of the three South Korean batteries.
SNE Research said that the three Korean battery makers are faltering in the face of Chinese companies' offensive this year. It added that global battery competition will intensify for the time being as Chinese players are expediting their penetration of the European market.