On June 27th, Geely Auto officially released its self-developed and manufactured latest generation of "blade" lithium iron phosphate battery - the Shield Short Sword Battery.
Compared with the "long sword battery" currently in the industry, Shield Short Sword Battery has certain advantages in safety performance, cycle life, fast charging ability, and low-temperature discharge.
At the same time, Shield Short Sword Battery is shorter, with higher energy density and volume utilization rate, more flexible grouping, and more extensive adaptability. It can be compatible with different types of vehicles, such as sedan, commercial vehicle, SUV, and MPV. It is said that this battery will be first used on Geely's Galaxy E5.
In addition to Shield Short Sword Battery, Geely has been active on self-developed and manufactured batteries before.
According to a set of public data, since March 2019, Geely has invested in 12 battery projects in China, with a total investment scale of more than 130 billion yuan. The four projects landed in Yingtan, Tonglu, Yancheng, and Quzhou in 2022 account for about 31% of the total investment.
Take Quzhou as an example. In mid-December last year, the Huangjin Power System of the Quzhou JiDian project was officially offline. It is said that the JiDian three-electric intelligent manufacturing factory in Quzhou was signed on May 28, 2022, and started on July 18. After full production, it has the production capacity of cells, batteries, electric drives, and energy storage systems. The Huangjin power system that went offline that day includes core three-electric products such as the electric drive, battery, and cell under the 800V platform.
At the same time, JiKe, a subsidiary of Geely, officially released its first self-developed battery, "gold brick battery," with a range increase of over 500 kilometers in 15 minutes of charging. This battery is the first product put into production by the aforementioned factory.
Geely's chairman Li Shufu once stated that with the rapid popularization of global new energy vehicles, Geely Holding Group is striving to create its own power battery industry.
In addition to Geely, many automotive companies such as GAC, Chang'an, and SAIC are also accelerating their entry into the power battery field. For example, on October 27, 2022, Yinpu Battery Technology Co., Ltd. invested and jointly registered by GAC Aion, GAC Motor, and GAC Trading, and controlled by GAC Aion was officially established. Last December, GAC Aion announced that the Intelligent Ecological factory of Yinpu Battery was completed and put into production, and the full-stack self-developed and manufactured P58 microcrystalline super energy battery was offline.
It is believed that the reason why automakers are betting on self-developed and manufactured batteries is due to the need to reduce costs and to strengthen their control over the automotive industry chain. With the wave of electrification sweeping through, the importance of power batteries, as the "heart" of new energy vehicles, is constantly highlighted.
Previously, GAC Chairman Zeng Qinghong pointed out at the 2022 World Electric Vehicle Power Battery Conference, "The cost of power batteries has accounted for 40% to 50%, or even 60% of new energy vehicles. Am I not working for Contemporary Amperex Technology?"
JiKe Intelligent Technology CEO An Conghui also pointed out that for a smart electric vehicle company, battery is the core and most basic element, as well as one of the moats for brand development in the future.
It is worth noting that with the continuous layout of automakers, the ranking of power battery companies is changing.
On June 14, the China Automotive Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance released data showing that China's power battery sales in May this year were 56.2 GWh, up 12.9% month-on-month and year-on-year; the installed capacity reached 39.9 GWh, up 41.2% year-on-year and 12.6% month-on-month; the export volume was 9.8 GWh, up 8.9% month-on-month.
Image source: China Automotive Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance
In terms of ranking, according to the top 15 list of domestic power battery enterprise installed capacity in May this year, Ningde Times and BYD still occupy the top two places, with their share of installed capacity accounting for 43.87% and 28.97% respectively, totaling over 70%, and the head effect is obvious. However, the days of second- and third-tier power battery companies may be difficult: they have to face competition from automotive companies in the less than 30% market share.
According to the aforementioned list, Geely's subsidiary, Jidian new energy, has a market share of 0.77%, ranking 11th; Yinpu battery from GAC group has a share of 0.18% and ranks 14th in terms of installed capacity. As car companies accelerate their layout, the future market landscape remains to be seen.