The "Three Kingdoms Battle" in power batteries: Chinese enterprises have locked in victory in advance, while Japanese and South Korean manufacturers have collectively lost ground.
Huaxia Energy Network (WeChat official account: hxny3060) learned that recently, the South Korean research institution SNE Research released the ranking and data of the global power battery installation volume from January to May 2025. The total global power battery installation volume was 401.3 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 38.5%.
Judging from the ranking of the Top 10, the competitive landscape of the "three-way battle" among Chinese, Japanese, and South Korean power battery manufacturers is changing. The market shares of Chinese enterprises and Japanese and South Korean enterprises are showing a seesaw effect. Chinese enterprises are locking in the victory in advance with an overwhelming advantage.
Chinese enterprises continue to dominate, occupying 6 seats. Among them, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) (SZ: 300750) retained the top spot, with a market share of 38.1%. BYD (SZ: 002594) followed closely, with a market share of 17.4%.
The overall market share of Chinese enterprises has also increased from 64.2% in the same period of 2024 to 68.4% this year, reaching a new high. This means that two out of every three electric vehicles in the world are equipped with power batteries from Chinese manufacturers.
Notably, second-tier Chinese battery manufacturers represented by CALB (HK: 3931), Guoxuan High-Tech Co., Ltd. (SZ: 002074), EVE Energy Co., Ltd. (SZ: 300014), and Honeycomb Energy have witnessed a significant increase in installation volume, further challenging the market positions of Japanese and South Korean manufacturers.
Correspondingly, the market shares of LG Energy Solution, SK On, Samsung SDI, and Panasonic have all declined. The "second-tier camp" in the power battery industry is being reshaped. Japanese and South Korean enterprises that have been squeezed out by Chinese first-tier enterprises will soon be overtaken by Chinese second-tier enterprises.
Market Shares of Japanese and South Korean Manufacturers All Shrink
In the ranking of the global power battery installation volume from January to May, LG Energy Solution still ranked third, with an installation volume of 39.9 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 14.3%. However, its market share declined from 12.1% in the same period of 2024 to 10% in 2025, further widening the gap with the top two.
Except for LG Energy Solution, the rankings and market shares of other Japanese and South Korean manufacturers have dropped significantly. SK On, Samsung SDI, and Panasonic dropped from the 4th to 6th places in 2024 to the 5th, 7th, and 8th places in the same period of 2025.
The main reason for the decline in the market shares of large Japanese and South Korean battery manufacturers is the decline in the sales of their electric vehicle customers.
For example, LG Energy Solution mainly supplies batteries to Tesla, Chevrolet, Kia, and Volkswagen. In the first half of this year, Tesla's sales declined, especially significantly in the European market, which impacted LG Energy Solution's battery business. Data shows that the number of Tesla models equipped with LG Energy Solution's batteries decreased by 13.3%.
Panasonic has also been affected by the decline in Tesla's sales.
Panasonic is a long-term partner of Tesla. As early as 2008, when Tesla launched its first model, the Roadster, Panasonic provided batteries for it. Due to this deep - binding relationship, Panasonic's ranking in power battery installation volume dropped to the 8th place. The installation volume decreased from 13.4 GWh last year to 11.7 GWh, a year-on-year decline of 12.9%, and the market share also declined from 4.6% in the same period of 2024 to 2.9%.
In addition, Samsung SDI's market share also declined from 4.9% to 3.3%, and the installation volume decreased from 14.3 GWh in the same period last year to 13.1 GWh. SNE said that the main reason for the decline in Samsung SDI's battery installation volume is also the decrease in the demand for batteries from major automobile manufacturers in Europe and North America.
Compared with LG Energy Solution, Panasonic, and Samsung SDI, SK On has been less affected by its downstream electric vehicle customers.
SK On has the smallest decline in market share among Japanese and South Korean manufacturers, dropping from 4.9% in the same period last year to 4.2% now, only losing 0.7 percentage points. Moreover, SK On's installation volume has maintained a year-on-year increase, rising from 14.2 GWh last year to 16.8 GWh. The reason is that SK On's customers are mainly Hyundai, Ford, Mercedes - Benz, and Volkswagen. Several models equipped with SK On's batteries have good sales in Europe.
Chinese Second - Tier Manufacturers' Rankings Soar
It is the Chinese battery manufacturers that have squeezed and taken over the market shares of Japanese and South Korean manufacturers.
Since 2023, CATL and BYD have firmly occupied the top two positions in the power battery ranking. CATL has even topped the global list for eight consecutive years.
In the first five months of this year, the "Matthew effect" in the market has intensified. The market shares of "King Ning" (CATL) and "King Di" (BYD) have further increased, leaving less space for other small and medium - sized manufacturers.
Among them, CATL's installation volume reached 152.7 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 40.6%, and its market share was 38.1%. CATL is so powerful that its installation volume alone is more than the sum of the second to fourth - ranked manufacturers.
BYD has also performed outstandingly, with an installation volume of 70 GWh, a year-on-year growth rate of up to 57.1%, and a market share of 17.4%.
The two first - tier manufacturers, CATL and BYD, have occupied more than half of the market share, and the growth trend has not peaked yet, putting great pressure on second - tier enterprises, including Japanese and South Korean manufacturers.
However, the greater pressure on Japanese and South Korean manufacturers comes from other Chinese enterprises in the second - tier. These Chinese enterprises are making rapid progress in terms of installation volume, market share, and rankings, posing a direct threat to the market positions of Japanese and South Korean manufacturers.
Among them, CALB's ranking has surpassed that of SK On, Samsung SDI, and Panasonic, rising from the 7th place in the same period last year to the 4th place. Its installation volume increased from 13.7 GWh to 16.9 GWh, a year-on-year increase of more than 22%.
However, CALB is the only Chinese manufacturer with a shrinking market share. Its market share declined from 4.7% to 4.2%, a decrease of 0.5 percentage points.
Guoxuan High - Tech has made more obvious progress, rising from the 9th place in the same period last year to the 6th place this year, leaving Samsung SDI and Panasonic behind. Its installation volume increased from 7.7 GWh to 13.8 GWh, a year-on-year growth rate of up to 78.9%, and its market share is 3.4%.
Although EVE Energy ranks 9th, its installation volume increased from 6.4 GWh to 10.8 GWh, a year-on-year increase of 67.7%, and its market share also increased from 2.2% to 2.7%.
Notably, Sunwoda Electronic Co., Ltd. (SZ: 300207), which ranked 10th in the same period last year, dropped out of the list this year, and was replaced by the biggest "dark horse" this year, Honeycomb Energy. Its installation volume soared from 5 GWh to 10.5 GWh, with an explosive growth rate of 100.1%, making it the fastest - growing manufacturer in the Top 10.
Honeycomb Energy's explosive growth stems from its breakthrough in the European market. It has supplied 128,000 sets of short - blade battery packs to Stellantis and more than 110,000 sets to BMW MINI.
In addition to the global ranking, the rise of Chinese manufacturers can also be clearly felt in terms of overseas market share.
In the overseas market, the combined market share of the four Japanese and South Korean manufacturers decreased from 55.2% in the same period last year to 46.1%, losing 9.1% of the market share. In contrast, Chinese power battery manufacturers have shown amazing growth in the overseas market. Among them, the overseas installation volume growth rates of BYD and Guoxuan High - Tech are 142.9% and 113.4% respectively, far ahead of other manufacturers.
Why Are Chinese Manufacturers So Powerful?
On the one hand, the strong rise and overall leadership of Chinese power battery manufacturers are affected by the customer groups and models of electric vehicles.
For example, CATL has a wider customer base, including Chinese automobile manufacturers such as Zeekr, Wenjie, Li Auto, and Xiaomi, as well as international customers such as Tesla, BMW, Mercedes - Benz, and Volkswagen. In particular, the continuous growth in the sales of Chinese automobile manufacturers has provided support for the growth of CATL's battery installation volume.
BYD's batteries have mainly benefited from the growth in the sales of its own electric vehicles. Through a multi - model strategy and price competitiveness, BYD's sales have been rising steadily. From January to May this year, BYD ranked first in global electric vehicle sales with about 1.586 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 34.8%. It is expected that its sales will reach 5.5 million vehicles in 2025, and thus its battery market share is expected to further expand.
On the other hand, the comprehensive strength of Chinese manufacturers is increasing. The competition in the power battery industry has never been just a numerical game of installation volume, but a comprehensive competition in technology, supply chain, and globalization capabilities. Chinese power battery manufacturers are accelerating the improvement of these comprehensive capabilities.
Recently, the globalization layout of Chinese enterprises has significantly accelerated. For example, CATL's Indonesian base has started construction, and raising funds through listing in Hong Kong will speed up the progress of its Hungarian project; Honeycomb Energy's Thai factory has been put into operation; EVE Energy has launched its listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to introduce international capital... Chinese battery manufacturers are upgrading from simple product exports to comprehensive overseas expansion in terms of capital internationalization, technical standards, and production systems.
Chinese battery manufacturers are also leading the world in technological innovation. For example, technological innovations such as CATL's Qilin battery and BYD's blade battery have improved energy density and safety while significantly reducing production costs.
However, while rising comprehensively, Chinese battery manufacturers should also be vigilant against various risks, including product safety and geopolitics. For example, after Trump took office in the first half of this year, it briefly affected the globalization actions of power battery manufacturers. There will be endless such uncertain factors in the future, and the most effective way to deal with them is to make themselves stronger.