Japan and South Korea power battery layout big PK

The spread of the new crown pneumonia epidemic has not been able to extinguish the enthusiasm of power battery manufacturers to expand. LG Chem, which has the largest battery installed capacity in the world, hopes to go to the next level through 'separationPower battery preparation production line. According to the latest report from South Korean media, at the LG Chem’s extraordinary shareholders meeting held a few days ago, the company’s proposal to split the battery business was passed with an approval rate of 82.3%. A new company called 'LG Energy Solutions' is expected to It was formally established on December 1 this year. Almost at the front and rear feet, Panasonic’s CFO Hirokazu Umeda pointed out at the company’s briefing that Panasonic is preparing to produce 4680 (46mm in diameter and 80mm in length) batteries for Tesla. This is exactly what Tesla will do this year. A brand new power battery that was unveiled on 'Battery Day'. Over 80% of shareholders agreed to divest the battery business LG Chem plans to divest the battery business. On the one hand, it wants to ease the pressure on the company. On the other hand, its battery business has grown into a behemoth, and it is time to 'separate'. Affected by the epidemic, the automotive industry has generally suffered severe setbacks this year, and LG Chem, which has bucked the trend, is particularly eye-catching. As one of the most important companies under the LG Group in South Korea, LG Chem has continued to invest heavily in the power battery business while maintaining its traditional petroleum and chemical business development over the years, and finally took advantage of the electrification of the global automotive industry. , To become one of the world's largest power battery manufacturers. Especially since the beginning of this year, the epidemic has caused a serious impact on the automotive industry, and European countries generally focus on electric vehicles. The selling of Tesla, Renault Zoe, Audi e-tron and other models has brought richness to its battery supplier LG Chem. Orders. According to the statistics of South Korean market research organization SNEResearch, in the first half of this year, LG Chem ranked first with a market share of 24.6% in the global automotive power battery installed capacity list, and a year-on-year increase of 82.8%. However, while ranking first in market share, LG Chem’s financial pressure cannot be ignored. Over the years, its investment in battery research and development and equipment has caused its loan amount to climb to 8 trillion won (about 47.1 billion yuan). Yuan), the ratio exceeds 100%, eager to get rid of the burden. In addition, judging from the financial report for the second quarter of this year, LG Chem’s battery business has changed from a sustained loss in the past and achieved operating profit of 155.5 billion won (approximately RMB 900 million), proving that the battery business has become self-reliant. Confident, more attractive to investors. In LG Chem's view, this is a good time to split. After the split plan is passed, the battery business will go out independently and become a wholly-owned subsidiary of LG Chem. It is expected to start operations on December 1, temporarily named 'LG Energy Solutions.' LG Chem will continue to invest in the new company and plans to cultivate it into an energy solution company with annual revenue of 30 trillion won (about 176.7 billion yuan) by 2024. Who is the front wave? Who is the back wave? Although LG Chem has temporarily gained market share in installed capacity in the power battery market, its competitors should not be underestimated. Take SK Innovation, which is also a Korean manufacturer, as an example. Although there is still a big gap between the installed capacity and LG Chem, the growth rate in the first half of the year also exceeded 60%. Before this, it also snatched the Volkswagen Group battery order from LG Chem. Since LG Chem has become an E-GMP platform battery supplier for Hyundai and Kia, the rising trend is very obvious. The commercial infringement of the two companies is still in stalemate. Looking at overseas, CATL and Panasonic both saw a 30% decline in installed capacity in the first half of the year, but they were mainly affected by the epidemic. Ningde Times Chairman Zeng Yuqun also publicly called for this that China's battery industry cannot 'get up early and catch up late.' Judging from the third-quarter financial report, CATL’s quarterly revenue was 12.693 billion yuan, a slight increase of 0.8% year-on-year; net profit was 1.420 billion yuan, an increase of 4.24% year-on-year. This is the first time that CATL has returned to positive growth this year. In addition, CATL’s 'circle of friends' is also expanding, and in September it issued US$1.5 billion in high-level dual-term fixed-rate bonds, which was oversubscribed by more than 9 times. Panasonic is also working hard to improve its battery business and improve and close its relationship with its important partner Tesla. On the 'Battery Day' in September this year, Tesla released a new 4680 battery, claiming that it can reduce the cost per kilowatt hour by 14%, while increasing the energy density by 5 times, and it can be applied to mass-produced models. Increase by 16%. In this regard, Panasonic CFO Hirokazu Umeda recently revealed that after the 'Battery Day' Panasonic immediately began preparations for the 4680 battery prototype production line, and the prototype production line will be put into use soon. At the same time, the battery joint venture between Panasonic and Tesla in Nevada, the United States, has begun to achieve profitability this year. The two sides are working together to increase the production capacity of the battery factory, which is expected to increase by another 10% by 2022. In addition to heavyweight battery manufacturers, there are also some battery startups that are also cooperating with car companies, and car companies such as Daimler and BMW are also trying to produce their own batteries. With the continued advancement of the global auto industry's electrification, competition in the power battery field will only become more intense. How long can LG Chem, which pulled the Ningde era from the top spot, can maintain its advantage depends on its own hands.