By Kim Seung-yeon
SEOUL, Aug. 3 (Yonhap) — Despite solid growth, the market share of the three major South Korean battery makers — LG Energy Solution Ltd. (LGES), Samsung SDI Co. and SK On Co. — decreased in the first half of 2023 from the previous year, a report said Thursday.
The combined market share of the three companies was 23.9 percent in the January-June period, down from 26.1 percent a year earlier, according to the latest data from industry tracker SNE Research.
LGES came third with 14.5 percent, unchanged from a year earlier, after China’s CATL and BYD, whose combined share represented more than 52 percent.
SK On accounted for 5.2 percent, a decrease from 6.8 percent, placing fifth. Samsung SDI ranked seventh with 4.1 percent, a drop from 4.8 percent from a year earlier.
The decline in the market share of the Korean companies was not due to a slowdown, but rather the explosive growth of Chinese players, spurred by robust domestic demand, SNE Research said.
All of the three Korean battery makers recorded double-digit growth in the volume of battery installations for the six months.
The volume of batteries from LGES installed in electric vehicles reached 44.1 gigawatt hours (GWh), a 50.3 percent increase from 29.3 GWh in the first half of 2022.
SK On logged 15.9 GWh, up 16.1 percent year-on-year from 13.7 GWh, while that of Samsung SDI grew 28.2 percent to 12.6 GWh from 9.8 GWh.
The strong sales of green cars with batteries from the three battery companies helped drive the growth, the report said.
LGES batteries are used in the Tesla Model 3 and Y, the Volkswagen ID 3 and 4, and Ford’s Mustang Mach-E.
SK On supplies for the Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia EV6 and Mercedes-Benz EQA and EQB.
Samsung SDI batteries are installed in the Rivian R1T and R1S pickup trucks, BMW i4, i7 and iX, and Audi E-Tron.
This graph, provided by SNE Research on Aug. 3, 2023, shows the market shares of key global battery makers in the first half ending in June. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
elly@yna.co.kr
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