According to LatePost, Xpeng is going to use Sunwonda’s 4c automotive battery in the middle-large sized SUV G9 published in November 2021 to substitute CATL’s automotive battery supply.
Sunwonda will become the class A battery supplier for G9, providing more than 50% of its product.
Class A supplier is the highest qualification a company can reach when assorting separate parts for another company’s products. This allows the provider to exempt troubles brought by qualification tests from all aspects.
The provider also can gain more opportunities to cooperate with its client and develop new products together.
Photo credit: baidu.com
Why it matters
Xpeng was the champion of last year’s Chinese new car manufacturers, delivering more than 98,000 cars in total.
However, the limitation of battery supply delays the rate of delivery. Xiaopeng He has suggested that the lithium battery’s shortage will increase the uncertainty of Xpeng’s production.
With Sunwonda being the new battery provider, such a problem can be easened.
Introduction to Sunwonda
Sunwonda established its company on lithium battery modules and gradually completed the upper and lower stream industrial chain.
In 2008, Sunwonda began to develop automotive batteries. It now formed a complete research and development platform on:
- Electromotive vehicles’ automotive cells
- Cars’ automotive battery BMS
- Energy storage system
In 2021, the automotive battery will become one of the fastest-growing business segments of Sunwonda.
Sunwonda’s monthly average battery installed has been increasing dramatically, reaching the top ten nationally.
Its yearly battery installed achieved 2.06GWh, occupying 1.3% of the market. It also announced multiple expansion projects, with total investment achieving 450 billion RMB. There will be an increased production capacity of 90GWh and at the end of 2025, Sunwonda’s production capacity will reach 140GWh.
Till the end of 2021, Sunwonda’s production capacity of automotive batteries is surpassing 10GWh.
Xpeng: why Sunwonda?
Xiang Zhang, the car industry researcher at NCUT(North China University of Technology)has concluded the characteristics of the battery suppliers car companies tend to corporate with:
- satisfy car company’s technological requirement
- within the purchasing price limit
- obtain a strong ability to supply its productions. If the battery producer stops its supply, the car companies will be unable to turn in new cars within the deadline.
Sunwonda satisfies all those requirements, unlike large firms
Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), suggested that:’Small battery producers(like Sunwonda) have the advantage to cooperate with manufacturers and provide products just in time. ’
