BYD Surpasses LG to Become World’s Second-Largest EV Battery Supplier

A report released by leading South Korean consulting firm SNE Research on May 3 showed that Chinese company BYD has surpassed South Korean firm LG Energy Solution and ranked second with a market share of 16.2%. The report also indicated that the total consumption of electric vehicle batteries worldwide in the first quarter was 133.0 GWh, an increase of 38.6% compared to the same period last year when it was at 95.9 GWh.

According to the report, battery giant CATL continues to hold the top position in the electric vehicle battery industry, supplying models such as Tesla’s Model 3 and Model Y with a market share of 35%. This also means that in the global ranking of electric vehicle battery suppliers, China’s CATL and BYD occupy the first two spots.

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According to data provided by China’s Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance, BYD’s cumulative installed capacity of batteries from January to March this year was 20.41 GWh, ranking second among domestic power battery companies with a market share of 30.99%. Currently, FinDreams Battery, BYD’s battery arm, has nearly 30 branches throughout China. In the industry’s view, BYD’s continuous expansion of external supply is laying the foundation for the spin-off and listing of its power battery sector.

“Regarding BYD’s external supply of batteries, many companies are discussing and gradually disclosing it based on customer needs. Many companies, including private enterprises and overseas enterprises, are in talks with BYD for cooperation using BYD’s blade battery and DM-i technology,” said Li Yunfei, General Manager of the BYD brand and Public Relations Department during an interview with Cailian Press at Auto Shanghai.

In addition, according to a report by German media Teslamag on May 5, Tesla has started production of the Model Y rear-wheel drive base version with BYD batteries at its super factory in Berlin, Germany. This is Tesla’s first electric vehicle in the European market that uses LFP (lithium iron phosphate) batteries.