The market share of South Korea’s “big three” battery companies—LG Energy Solution, SK On, and Samsung SDI—has nearly halved over the past four years in the global electric vehicle (EV) battery market.
According to SNE Research on Dec. 9, the three companies held a combined market share of 20.2% from January to October this year. This marks a sharp decline from their peak of 34.7% in 2020, a 14.5 percentage point drop over four years.
S. Korea’s battery industrys have long been regarded as the next-generation backbone of the country’s industrial base, following semiconductors and automobiles.
From 2020 to around 2022, their dominance was clear—about three to four of every ten EVs sold globally were powered by batteries from S. Korean companies. However, a temporary plateau in EV demand, compounded by uncertainties such as the upcoming inauguration of the second Trump administration, has cast a shadow over the industry. President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to significantly cut EV and battery subsidies introduced under President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
Faced with these challenges, S. Korean battery companies plan to diversify their businesses and delay existing investment plans to overcome what many are calling the “EV famine.” Meanwhile, companies in the battery materials, parts, and equipment sectors are struggling to find viable solutions as the overall market shrinks, deepening concerns within the industry.
Industry growth remains largely concentrated in China, where domestic companies are rapidly expanding, further chipping away at the market share of South Korean firms.
From January to October this year, global sales of electric vehicles (including plug-in hybrids) reached approximately 13.56 million units, a 24% increase compared to the same period last year. However, much of this growth stemmed from China’s domestic market.
Excluding China, sales in other major markets such as the United States and Europe grew by only 5.6% during this time. Most Chinese automakers exclusively use batteries from domestic suppliers, leaving limited opportunities for foreign competitors.
This weaker global performance has been reflected in the declining factory utilization rates of South Korean battery manufacturers. At the end of 2022, these rates stood at 70–80%, but by the third quarter of this year, they had dropped to 68% for Samsung SDI, 60% for LG Energy Solution, and around 46% for SK On. Without the support of Advanced Manufacturing Production Credit (AMPC) benefits under the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), all three companies reported operating losses in the third quarter.
