Electric Vehicle Batteries (Global Market)

Main article: Electric vehicles

2022

In Moscow, the production of protective cases for batteries of electric vehicles begins. 60 million rubles invested in it

On August 23, 2022, it became known about the production of protective aluminum cases for electric vehicle batteries in the Moscow Technopolice Special Economic Zone (SEZ). We are talking about the project of NPO "Composite," the company invested about 60 million rubles in it. Read more here.

India allocates $1 billion to recycle batteries for electric vehicles

In early June 2022, India's largest electronic device processor Attero announced a $1 billion investment in expanding production. These funds were allocated by the Indian authorities. The company will spend it until 2027 to build lithium-ion battery recycling plants in Poland, the United States and Indonesia to meet 15% of global demand for lithium-ion battery recycling. Read more here.

Electric vehicle battery standard approved

In May 2022, the MOBI blockchain alliance approved the first battery standard for electric vehicles. It was named Battery State of Health. The standard will allow users to find out the current state of the batteries and assess the vehicle's range, as well as data will help with the disposal and reuse of the battery, and can also be used by insurance companies. Read more here.

Batteries for electric vehicles have risen in price by 50%

On April 20, 2022, an analysis of the electric vehicle battery market was published, according to which the average cost of lithium-ion batteries in the first quarter of 2022 increased to $160 per kilowatt-hour compared to $105 a year earlier. The reason for the rise in value was disruptions in the supply chain, sanctions against Russian metallurgical companies and speculative investor sentiment.

There is another kind of tipping point we seem to have reached - an emotional or psychological tipping point among consumers, "said Venkat Srinivasan, director of the Center for Collaborative Research in Energy Storage at Argonne National Laboratory USA in Chicago. According to him, "more and more people" will buy electric cars, "despite the cost of a battery and a vehicle

The cost of batteries for electric vehicles for the year increased by 50%

It is speculated that this jump in battery costs could be a surge in the long-term trend, with technology improvements and production growth providing cost reductions for three consecutive decades. Industry data show that an example of this is the average cost of a kilowatt-hour of $105 in 2021, which decreased by almost 99% compared to more than $7,500 in 1991.

Among experts, it is widely believed that the cost of batteries can remain high for about 2023, but then a significant drop is possible, since large investments by automakers and suppliers in the extraction, processing and production of battery cells, as well as diversification of raw materials sources will lead to a transition from deficit to excess.

"It's like a bubble - and it will take at least the end of 2023 for that bubble to stabilize," says consultant Prabhakar Patil, a former LG Chem executive.

The industry has long expected the cost of battery cells to fall to $100 per kilowatt-hour as a signal that EVs are reaching price parity with fossil fuel peers. But with rising gasoline prices and changing consumer preferences, this is no longer so important, analysts say.

Demand for electric vehicles in China and other markets is "growing faster than people thought - faster than the supply of materials" for electric vehicle batteries, said Stan Whittingham, one of the inventors of lithium-ion batteries and a 2019 Nobel laureate.

Many young people entering the market make buying decisions beyond the simple economy and say they will only drive EVs because they are better for the planet, Burns says. "They decide on it even if it's cheaper for them to drive a gas-powered car."

{{quote 'I don't think we'll stop seeing reports trying to show the trend of battery prices going down to $60 or $80 per kilowatt hour as promising targets, but it's possible they will never be achieved, "he says. "However, this does not mean that EV adoption will not^[1] }}

2021

Major Electric Vehicle Battery Manufacturers

According to SNE Research analysts, in 2021, the share of South Korean companies in the global battery market for electric vehicles amounted to 30.4%, which is 4.3 pp less compared to 2020. The study was published in February 2022.

CATL has since 2017 become the world's largest manufacturer of electric vehicle batteries in 2021, according to market research firm SNE Research. With an installed capacity of 96.7 GW · h, CATL received 32.6% of the global lithium-ion automotive battery market share in 2021. The all-Asian podium was taken by LG Energy Solution in second place with a market share of 20.3% and a total capacity of 60.2 GW · h, according to estimates. Panasonic ranks third with an installed capacity of 36.1 GW · h and a market share of 12.2%.

Among the largest manufacturers of batteries for electric vehicles: CATL, LG Energy Solution, Panasonic

However, this also means that the top three already have a combined market share of 65.1% with 193 GW · h of installed capacity. According to SNE Research, the total market size at the end of the year was 296.8 GW · h, which is twice as much as in 2020. In particular, the growth was 102.3%.

Manufacturer - Production capacity for 2021 - Market share

• CATL 96.7 GW · h 32.6%
• LG Energy Solution 60.2 GW · h 20.3%
• Panasonic 36.1 GW · h 12.2%
• BYD 26.3 GW · h 8.8%
• SK On 16.7 GW · h 5.6%
• Samsung SDI GW · h 13.2 4.5%
• CALB 7.9 GW · h 2.7%
• Gotion High-Tech 6.4 GW · h 2.1%
• AESC 4.2 GW · h 1.4%
• SVOLT 3.1 GW · h 1.0%

The fastest growth was recorded in SVOLT, whose turnover in 2021 increased more than fivefold. However, the largest increase in capacity can be attributed to CATL and BYD, which in 2021 increased the installed production capacity by 2.5 times. CALB and Gotion still have a factor of 2.

Among Korean manufacturers, LGES was able to increase by 70%, according to the Pulse News portal, also thanks to the active sales of Tesla Model Y and VW ID.4. However, as the market grew faster, LGES lost market share. SK On was able to double its capacity and ranked fifth with a 5.6% market share. Samsung SDI was able to increase its capacity by only 50% to 13.2 GW · h and took sixth place with a market share of 4.5%.

Another Japanese manufacturer, AESC, entered the top ten in ninth place with a market share of 4.2 GW · h or 1.4%. Compared to 2020, AESC was able to increase its production capacity by 0.3 GW · h. However, major projects were announced in England and France, which should increase the company's capacity from 2022 to 2024.^[2]

Redwood Materials US plant launch plan

In September 2021, Redwood Materials, led by Tesla co-founder JB Straubel, plans to build a large new plant to move the $25 billion battery supply chain from Asia to the United States. Read more here.

Announcement of the first sodium-ion batteries for electric vehicles

At the end of July 2021, the Chinese company CATL presented the first commercial sample of a sodium-ion battery for electric vehicles. According to the manufacturer, they can be produced in parallel with lithium-ion, without converting conveyors. Although such batteries cannot yet boast outstanding performance, CATL managed to solve the main problem by creating materials for the cathode and anode with the necessary kinetic properties. Read more here.

2020: Electric Vehicle Battery Market Growth by 21%, Largest Suppliers - SNE Research

At the end of 2020, the volume of the global battery market for electric vehicles in terms of the total capacity of the supplied batteries showed an increase of 21%, to 142.8 GW * h. The largest manufacturers of such products include CATL, LG Energy Solution (a subsidiary of LG Chem), Panasonic, according to data from the consulting company SNE Research.

According to the study, the Asia-Pacific region turned out to be the absolute leader in battery production in 2020. LG Energy Solution showed the best growth - by 172%, to 33.5 GWh thanks to cooperation with Tesla and Volkswagen Group.

In December 2020, the battery market grew significantly - to 25.8 GWh (52.1% more than in the same period in 2019 - 17 GWh).

Electric vehicle battery market up 21% in 2020

The largest suppliers in December 2020 were: LG Energy Solution, ahead of CATL and Panasonic:

• LG Energy Solution - 6.9 GWh (up 366%);
• CATL - 6.1 GWh (16.5% increase);
• Panasonic - 4.1 GWh (7.8% decrease);
• BYD - 1.8 GWh (46.4% increase);
• Samsung SDI - 1.4 GWh (up 166%);
• SK Innovation - 1.2 GWh (up 676%);
• CALB - 0.7 GWh (286% increase);
• Envision AESC - 0.4 GWh (up 64.5%);
• Guoxuan - 0.4 GWh (7.3% decrease);
• CATL-SAIC - 0.4 GWh (295% increase);
• others - 2.2 GWh (21.8% decrease).

In 2020, the total battery market, according to SNE Research, was about 142.8 GWh (21.0% more than 118 GWh in 2019). CATL was in first place - 34.3 GWh (up 5.4%), slightly ahead of LG Energy Solution - 33.5 GWh (up 172%) and noticeably ahead of Panasonic - 26.5 GWh (down 8.2%).

Indicators of other large suppliers:

• BYD - 9.6 GWh (13.5% reduction);
• Samsung SDI - 8.2 GWh (up 85.3%);
• SK Innovation - 7.7 GWh (274% increase);
• Envision AESC - 3.8 GWh (3.1% decrease);
• CALB - 3.4 GWh (128% increase);
• Guoxuan - 2.5 GWh (22.8% decrease);
• PEVE - 2.0 GWh (8.1% reduction);
• other - 11.2 GWh (29% decrease^[3]

2019: Top biggest electric vehicle batteries

On November 27, 2019, Reuters published an article in which it named the world's largest manufacturers of electric vehicle batteries.

Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL)

CATL is the leader in the electric battery market. The company partners with giants such as BMW, Volkswagen, Daimler, Volvo, Toyota and Honda.

Reuters published an article in which it named the world's largest manufacturers of electric vehicle batteries

CATL took first place largely due to government subsidies for the sale of electric cars equipped with Chinese-made batteries. The electric machine market in China is the largest in the world, but subsidies are planned to be canceled in 2020.

Panasonic

Panasonic makes electric vehicle batteries in Japan, China and plans to move some of its plants into a new joint venture with Toyota. However, the main factory at Panasonic is located in Nevada (USA), where batteries for Tesla cars are produced .

BYD

The Chinese company BYD, in which Warren Buffett invested, is one of the three largest manufacturers of electric vehicle batteries in the world. BYD uses batteries mainly for its own cars and buses. The company plans to launch production in Europe.

LG Chem

LG Chem is considered one of the first manufacturers of electric vehicle batteries when it began supplying them to General Motor. The South Korean vendor's customers also include Ford, Renault, Hyundai Motor, Tesla, Volkswagen and Volvo.

Samsung SDI

This company makes batteries for electric vehicles in South Korea, China and Hungary. Samsung SDI has orders from BMW, Volvo and Volkswagen. The South Korean company intends to invest 1.2 billion euros in expanding its plant in Hungary, and European authorities are studying whether Budapest's financial support complies with European law.^[4]

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