With the end of the subsidy transition period approaching, power battery companies are ramping up their efforts to compete for the market in the second half of the year.
On May 16, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released the 308th batch of the "Announcement of Road Motor Vehicle Manufacturers and Products" for new product publicity, with a total of 461 new energy vehicle products applying for approval. Among them, there are 209 new energy buses, 197 new energy special vehicles, and 55 new energy passenger vehicles.
According to Gaogong Lithium Battery's analysis, the 308th batch of vehicle applications included a large number of battery technologies and manufacturers, with lithium iron phosphate batteries still holding an advantage. Specifically, 255 new energy vehicle models used lithium iron phosphate batteries, 129 used ternary lithium batteries, 39 used lithium manganese oxide batteries, 24 used lithium-ion batteries (type not specified), 5 used lithium titanate batteries, 6 used multi-component lithium batteries, and 7 used fuel cells.
Compared to the 307th batch of announcements, the highlight of the 308th batch is the strong debut of emerging internet-based car manufacturers. Among them, new models such as the Qiantu K50 sports car from Great Wall Motors, the WM Motor's mass-produced Weike brand pure electric multi-purpose passenger vehicle, and the Yundu π from Yundu New Energy are all listed, each equipped with ternary lithium batteries produced by Shanghai Canai, Gushen Energy, CATL, and Mengshi Technology, respectively. Meanwhile, Hongqi also applied for its first new energy vehicle, equipped with ternary lithium batteries provided by FAW Group. According to reports, the new car will be launched within the year.
It is worth noting that, in addition to emerging car manufacturers injecting fresh blood into the new energy passenger vehicle market, the competitive landscape in the new energy passenger vehicle power battery sector has also undergone some changes. The most obvious phenomenon is that domestically produced 21700 batteries have begun to be introduced into the new energy passenger vehicle sector.
During its nationwide supply chain survey in 2018, GGII (Gaogong Lithium Battery Research Institute) learned that several battery companies that originally focused on the new energy bus and special vehicle sectors plan to focus on expanding into the new energy passenger vehicle power battery market this year, and have already started designing system solutions for passenger vehicle OEMs since last year. This trend was confirmed in the 308th batch of announcements, and it is expected that more battery companies will enter the passenger vehicle sector in the future.
Meanwhile, among the new energy vehicle applications submitted by joint venture automakers, domestically produced power batteries continue to face setbacks, with foreign brands becoming their preferred choice. This indicates that as subsidies are phased out, foreign battery brands are accelerating their return to the Chinese market, targeting mid-to-high-end joint venture new energy passenger vehicles to challenge Chinese power battery companies in the high-end market.
In response, GGII (Gaogong Lithium Battery Research Institute) has compiled a summary of the new energy vehicle models and power battery compatibility information for the 308 batches of products submitted for public announcement. See below for details:
Of the 55 new energy passenger vehicles submitted for approval, 47 are pure electric vehicles and 8 are plug-in hybrid vehicles. In terms of the power batteries used, 42 are ternary lithium batteries, 10 are lithium-ion batteries (type not specified), and 1 each are lithium-ion composite batteries, lithium iron phosphate batteries, and lithium manganese oxide batteries.
In this batch, emerging car manufacturers Qiantu Motors, WM Motor, and YunDu New Energy all submitted applications for new energy vehicle models. Among them, Qiantu Motors submitted two Qiantu K50 sports cars, both equipped with ternary lithium soft-pack power battery systems produced by Shanghai Kaneng, with a top speed of 200km/h and a comprehensive driving range of 365km.
WM Motor has submitted applications for five mass-produced WM-branded pure electric passenger vehicles. Three of these vehicles use ternary lithium battery systems manufactured by Zhejiang Guoshen Energy Technology Co., Ltd.; the remaining two vehicles use ternary lithium battery cells supplied by CATL and powertrains supplied by WM Motor.
Among the plug-in hybrid electric vehicles declared, the plug-in hybrid sedans from Changan Ford and Beijing Benz are equipped with ternary lithium batteries supplied by Ford Motor Company and Deutsche ACCUmotive, respectively.
At the same time, battery companies that originally focused on the new energy bus and logistics vehicle sectors, including Guancheng Ruimin, Tianjin Shares, and Chunlan Clean Energy, also included a new energy passenger vehicle model in the 308th batch of announcements, starting to enter the passenger vehicle power battery market. It is expected that more battery companies will enter the market to compete for a share, and market competition may further intensify.
