Amperex Technology Limited (ATL) is a battery manufacturing company founded in 1999 by Robin Zeng. The company specializes in the research, development, and manufacturing of rechargeable lithium-ion and lithium-ion polymer batteries. ATL is notable for supplying batteries used in mobile devices, including smartphones, laptops, and digital cameras, sourcing their products to tech companies such as Apple and Samsung.[3][4][5]
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Native name | 新能源科技有限公司 |
|---|---|
| Industry | |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Founder | Robin Zeng |
| Headquarters | |
Key people |
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| Revenue | ¥1,173.35 billion (FY2022)[1] |
Number of employees | 42,000 (2022)[2] |
ATL is headquartered in Hong Kong and has production facilities in Dongguan and Ningde, China, as well as in Haryana, India.[6]
Company history
editZeng Yuqun, more commonly known as Robin Zeng, founded ATL in 1999.[3][7] Operating from the company headquarters in Hong Kong, Zeng acquired technology licenses from US companies to make batteries for laptops and MP3 players.[7]
Two years after establishment, ATL was able to produce batteries for 1 million devices. In the aftermath of this success, the company was acquired by TDK in 2005.[8] Zeng continued managing ATL after the acquisition together with Huang Shilin.[7] TDK's acquisition saw ATL expand its production into the smartphone market, becoming a key battery supplier to prominent technology companies like Samsung and Apple.[7]
In 2006, ATL started exploring the electric vehicle (EV) battery market, with the first inquiry coming from Indian car company, Reva. Given the fundamental differences between batteries used in EVs and those in portable devices, ATL's founders Zeng and Huang established a dedicated research department for EV battery development.[7]
In 2008, some of ATL's early EV batteries were used in a demo fleet of electric buses during the Beijing Olympics. This marked the company's first foray into the EV market.[7] In 2011, Zeng and Huang separated ATL's EV battery business into a new company, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL).[3][8]
ATL continued its growth trajectory and, in the first quarter of 2020, it held the largest revenue share (36.5%) in the smartphone battery market.[9] Later in 2020, the company expanded its operations to India by acquiring 180 acres of industrial land in Haryana, aiming to supply batteries to the country's smartphone and EV industries.
In 2023, ATL formed strategic partnerships with Group14 Technologies and AM Batteries. The partnership with Group14 Technologies aimed at integrating advanced silicon battery technology to improve ATL's battery performance,[10] while the collaboration with AM Batteries focused on developing solvent-free electrode manufacturing technology, addressing environmental concerns in the lithium-ion battery production industry.[11]
Footprint
editATL is headquartered in Hong Kong, with subsidiaries in Ningde and Dongguan, China,[12] as well as India.[6]
ATL's parent company, TDK, is expected to begin manufacturing batteries for iPhones in India starting in 2025.[13]
Relationship with CATL
editHuang Shilin co-founded ATL along with Zeng Yuqun in 1999, and would later become the vice chairman and Zeng's second in command at CATL.[14]
CATL was formed in 2011 as a spin-off of ATL's EV battery division.[15]
In 2021, Ampace was founded as a joint venture between ATL and CATL. The company is headquartered in Xiamen. While ATL has generally specialized in small batteries such as those used in smartphones and laptops, and CATL has specialized in large batteries used in EVs, Ampace has focused on medium sized batteries such as those used in electric scooters, UAVs, and power tools.[16]
In January 2024, Ampace launched a battery management system (BMS) intended to improve safety and reliability in medium sized applications.[17] Other products developed by Ampace include the Andes 600 Pro, a 600 watt portable power station,[18] and the Kunlun series ultra-long lifecycle batteries.[19]
In April 2022, ATL and CATL partnered to establish a joint venture called the "Xiamen Ampcore Technology Limited" to further expand into the electric vehicles business. Xiamen Ampcore Technology Limited's capital is 5 billion RMB, with ATL having a 30% stake and CATL having a 70% stake. The same year, ATL and CATL also established a battery pack joint venture called "Xiamen Ampack Technology Limited" capital is RMB 1 billion, with ATL holding 70% and CATL holding 30%. ATL established Xiamen Ampeak Technology Limited, in which ATL owns 100% of the shares, as a holding company of the two joint ventures.[20]
References
edit- ^ "TDK 2022 Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved 31 March 2024.
- ^ "TDK 2022 Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved 31 March 2024.
- ^ a b c Wang, Jennifer (2021-05-03). "This Chinese Battery Company Has Produced More Billionaires Than Google Or Facebook". Forbes.
- ^ Martin, Timothy W.; McKinnon, John D. (2017-01-20). "Samsung Investigation Blames Battery Size for Galaxy Note 7 Fires". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660.
- ^ Lee, Stan (2022-04-28). "Samsung considering using ATL's batteries for new foldable phones". THE ELEC, Korea Electronics Industry Media (in Korean).
- ^ a b Haidar, Faizan (2020-08-12). "Japanese firm Amperex Technology Limited acquires 180-acre at Rs 550 crore in Haryana". The Economic Times. ISSN 0013-0389.
- ^ a b c d e f Rathi, Akshat (2019-04-03). "The inside story of how CATL became the world's largest electric-vehicle battery company". Quartz.
- ^ a b Tyler-Dudley, Davis, et al. "CATL: China’s Battery King. Archived 2023-07-16 at the Wayback Machine" 6 May 2021
- ^ "ATL Leads the Global Smartphone Battery Market Share in 1Q20". EE Times Asia. 2020-07-08.
- ^ "Group14 Technologies Enters Production to Power the Next Generation of Smartphones for Amperex Technology Limited (ATL)". www.prnewswire.com. 2023-02-28.
- ^ "AM Batteries and Amperex Technology Limited to jointly develop solvent-free electrode manufacturing technology for li-ion batteries". BatteryIndustry.tech. 2023-04-07.
- ^ "ATL sued Zhuhai Guanyu for more than 100 million yuan! | Shanghai Non ferrous Metals". news.metal.com. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ^ "Apple plans to move iPhone 16 battery production out of China and into India". Quartz. 2023-12-07. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ^ Rathi, Akshat (October 12, 2023). "How China Left the World Far Behind in the Battery Race". Bloomberg.
- ^ Thompson, Alex (2022-12-20). "The History Of CATL: An Asian Giant | AceOn Group". Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ^ "Little known spin-off of China's CATL dominates home energy storage market". South China Morning Post. 2024-04-18. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
- ^ Johnson, Seth (2023-12-30). "Ampace: Pioneering Portable Power Solutions with Advanced Technology". Wccftech. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
- ^ Westlake, Mark. "Ampace Andes 600 Pro Portable Power Station Review - Gearbrain". www.gearbrain.com. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
- ^ Sakharkar, Ashwini (2023-09-22). "Ampace unveils ultra-long cycle life batteries with 15,000-cycle". Inceptive Mind. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
- ^ "Announcement on Business Alliance and Establishment of Joint Venture with Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited [Background to Disclosure] and Notice of Establishment of Subsidiary". TDK. April 27, 2022.