BYD keeps No.2 rank in global EV battery market

China’s BYD cemented its position as the world’s second-largest EV battery maker, outselling South Korean rival LG Energy Solution for a second straight month in August.

Shenzhen-based BYD sold about 6.5 gigawatt-hours of batteries in August, posting 159 percent growth from a year earlier, according to October 6 report from SNE Research, a Seoul-based research company.

Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd., another Chinese maker, maintained its clear lead as the world’s largest battery maker with 18 gigawatt-hours, up 129 percent, Bloomberg reports.

LG Energy followed in the third position with 5 gigawatt-hours, climbing 16 percent from a year ago, led by sales of Volkswagen Group’s ID4, Ford’s Mustang Mach-E, and Tesla’s Model Y, SNE said.

China’s CALB, which started trading in Hong Kong Thursday after a $1.3 billion initial public offering, ranked 7th, with 1.9 gigawatt-hours.

The company aims to become a top-three player in the EV battery industry within five years, CEO Jingyu Liu said in an interview.

Total EV battery sales almost doubled to 45.7 gigawatt-hours in August, driven by Chinese demand, SNE said.

However, the US Inflation Reduction Act may change the landscape of Chinese-dominated battery supply chains by forcing more battery makers and their suppliers to build plants in North America, the report said.