LFP battery surge challenges CATL’s dominance as Chinese and Korean manufacturers accelerate global expansion and reshape the power battery landscape.
In early July, not only did China’s new energy vehicle (NEV) manufacturers release their half-year reports, but so did power battery companies—now considered one of the “three major components” of the new era in the automotive industry.
Compared with previous years, this report showed few major surprises: Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL) remained the leader in both sales and installed capacity; lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries continued to dominate; and the familiar names still occupied the top fifteen positions.
However, CATL’s domestic market share dropped from 46.38% in the first half of 2024 to 43.05% in the first half of 2025. Meanwhile, LFP battery installations skyrocketed by 73.0% to reach 244 GWh, while ternary batteries fell 10.8% to 55.5 GWh.
The ongoing scrutiny of CATL’s market share trends and the rise of LFP batteries point to significant shifts within the industry.
Looking globally, CATL’s international market share climbed slightly from 37.5% in January–May 2024 to 38.1% during the same period in 2025, maintaining its dominant stance.
Similar trends are emerging abroad. LFP technology is gaining traction, and Korea’s top three battery producers—LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI, and SK On—are rapidly expanding LFP production capacity in North America to deepen their foothold in the U.S. market.
Let’s examine key developments and trends in the domestic and international power battery sector over the past six months.
The Market Share Tug-of-War
According to the China Automotive Battery Innovation Alliance (CABIA)’s monthly reports, CATL’s fluctuating market share has garnered considerable attention.
In April 2025, CATL’s monthly market share in installed battery capacity fell below 40% for the first time in 18 months, reaching 39.44%. From January to April, its cumulative share dropped by 4.77% year-on-year to 42.9%, and for the first half of 2025, it fell by 3.33% to 43.05%.
That said, CATL’s installed battery volume rose from 93.31 GWh in H1 2024 to 128.60 GWh in H1 2025, a 37.8% increase, demonstrating robust growth. But the competitive pressure from rising players cannot be ignored.
This is closely tied to the “LFP battery boom” of recent years.
In H1 2025, LFP products achieved a remarkable 73% year-on-year growth. Apart from the marginal “other types” of power batteries, the market shares for LFP and ternary lithium-ion batteries formed an 8:2 split.
For context, in H1 2024, the ratio stood at 7:3, with ternary batteries achieving a 29.7% year-on-year growth. By contrast, in 2025, ternary batteries posted a 10.8% decline.
The outbreak of civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the world’s largest cobalt producer, has disrupted supply. But more importantly, technical advancements in LFP batteries and intense price wars in the auto industry have contributed to their resurgence.
At the beginning of this year, both BYD and CATL launched ultra-fast-charging LFP batteries, boosting fast-charging capabilities to 10C/12C. BYD introduced its second-generation Blade Battery, which it claims can deliver 400 km of range with just a 5-minute charge, while CATL unveiled its second-generation Shenxing Battery, touted to offer up to 800 km of range along with 12C ultra-fast charging performance.
Even second-tier battery makers now supply pure EVs with 4C/5C ultra-fast-charging LFP batteries.
A representative case is the XPeng P7+. This C-segment EV, with steady monthly sales of 6,000–8,000 units, is powered by a 5C LFP battery from EVE Energy, offering over 200 km of range from a 5-minute charge. Similarly, the 2025 XPeng G6 uses CALB’s 5C LFP battery.
Likewise, for the Li Auto i6, all but the high-end variants (which use CATL’s 5C LFP) rely on Sunwoda’s 5C LFP batteries.
Even non-first-tier battery companies are seeing growth. Gotion High-Tech, one of the few top 10 companies to grow its market share in H1 2025, reported a 190.6% year-on-year sales increase in April, thanks to partnerships with Chery, Geely, Leapmotor, and Wuling.
At the start of 2025, industry insiders noted that LFP battery costs stood at about RMB 370 ($51.80) per kWh, compared to RMB 480 ($67.20) for ternary batteries—a price difference of around RMB 5,500 ($770) for a 50 kWh pack. With fast-charging now no longer a shortcoming, LFP batteries’ inherent safety and cost advantages are accelerating their adoption.
Even high-end EVs like Xiaomi’s SU7 and YU7 use LFP batteries in both standard and Pro versions, jointly supplied by FinDreams Battery (BYD’s battery subsidiary) and CATL. These giants are embracing LFP.
FinDreams Battery, already entrenched in the LFP field, is now supplying XPeng’s M03 and NIO’s ONVO L60, breaking CATL’s exclusive supply pattern.
While rivals leverage LFP to rapidly grow and eat into CATL’s market share, CATL’s lack of strong positioning in the small/micro-EV segment—the highest-volume pure EV category—has hurt its momentum.
At the same time, automakers are developing their own batteries—such as Geely’s Aegis Gold Brick Battery—and actively diversifying their suppliers beyond CATL.
Looking at new models released this year, only premium EVs like the AITO M9, Li Auto L9, and Li MEGA exclusively use CATL’s ternary lithium batteries. Ternary’s trajectory is clearly becoming more premium.
But here’s the catch: apart from the Li MEGA, total monthly sales of these models’ pure EV variants barely exceed 1,000 units. The resulting limited demand for ternary batteries—along with fluctuating Tesla sales—has clearly impacted CATL’s H1 market share.
In China’s NEV market, currently shaped by fierce price wars, automakers are under mounting pressure to reduce costs across the board. As one of the largest cost components, battery price reductions have become a top priority.
Consumers want high-capacity, cost-effective EVs. Automakers want batteries that are both cheap and high-performing. LFP technology—thanks to its recent advancements—is now the preferred choice. Meanwhile, slim profit margins in China are driving battery companies overseas in search of growth through LFP exports.
This trend is recognized not only by Chinese firms like CATL, Gotion, and FinDreams, but also by Korean battery makers.
Going Global
China’s power battery installed capacity reached 299.6 GWh in H1 2025, up 47.3% year-on-year, while sales reached 485.5 GWh, a 51.6% increase.
At the 2023 Chongqing Auto Forum, Changan Auto Chairman Zhu Huarong projected China’s 2025 power battery demand at 1,000 GWh, while current production capacity stands at 4,800 GWh—a severe oversupply.
As a result, battery makers have accelerated overseas expansion and are starting to reap the benefits.
In H1 2025, China exported 81.6 GWh of power batteries, up 26.5% year-on-year. CATL and BYD retained the top two export positions. BYD’s exports rose 84.4% year-on-year—likely related to its booming vehicle exports.
BYD exported 443,100 vehicles in H1 2025, up 115.8% year-on-year—exceeding its full-year 2024 exports (433,000 units) in just six months. Since most of BYD’s models use its own batteries, this has driven its battery exports accordingly.
SVOLT, which has supplied BMW MINI for years, recorded a stunning 232.9% export growth and recently secured global orders from smart. Its overseas strength—especially in Europe—is set to grow.
SVOLT Chairman Yang Hongxin disclosed that 30% of its H1 2025 shipments (5.13 GWh) came from overseas markets. Similarly, Gotion’s overseas revenue broke RMB 10 billion ($1.4 billion) for the first time in 2024, reaching RMB 11.005 billion ($1.54 billion), up 71.21% year-on-year. Its revenue split is now 70% domestic, 30% international.
From giants to small players, everyone is going global.
Why? The answer is simple: overseas, especially in Europe and the U.S., profit margins are higher.
CATL’s 2024 annual report shows RMB 110.336 billion ($15.45 billion) in overseas revenue with a gross margin of 29.45%, 7 percentage points higher than its 22.25% margin on RMB 251.677 billion ($35.23 billion) domestic revenue. And this is before its overseas channels have fully matured.
With partnerships already spanning nearly all Chinese NEV brands, and amid mounting domestic competition, CATL has prioritized global expansion in recent years.
In May 2025, CATL raised HK$41 billion ($5.25 billion) through its Hong Kong public offering. Of that, 90% will fund European expansion—especially its ongoing plant construction in Hungary. Besides its German plant, CATL is also building or planning facilities in Debrecen (Hungary) and Spain.
Korean Turnaround, Global Battlefield
Not coincidentally, to bypass protectionist tariffs, BYD is also building battery plants in Hungary and Brazil. As overseas battery makers are still navigating the global market, Chinese firms with strong know-how hold a distinct edge.
While the future LFP output from CATL’s Hungary plant remains uncertain, the strategies of Korea’s top three battery firms in North America are already clear.
Unlike Chinese battery makers, who remain cautious about U.S. policies, Korean giants have secured solid positions. LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI, and SK On operate around 8, 2, and 6 factories in North America, respectively—giving them ample resources.
With U.S. energy storage growing rapidly amid the LFP wave—Tesla’s energy storage business has seen multiple quarters of over 90% growth—the Korean trio are converting existing production lines to LFP.
LG’s LFP plant began operations in May 2025. Samsung SDI is also developing LFP cells, aiming for mass production in 2026.
Armed with early mover advantages, Chinese and Korean battery firms are racing to build factories and ramp up LFP output.
The global battery war is far from settled. Solid-state batteries remain on the horizon. In the face of volatility, it may be composure, resolve, and innovation that determine which battery makers ultimately prevail.
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